A Very Special Friendship Card... (and Another Bucket-List Item Achieved!)

Oh Happpeeee Day... Today I am sharing my card for the Handmade Harbour Papercraft Party #30 -  "Sunshine, Rain or Flowers" on which I used some of Wendy's new digital, sizeable, printable-at-home, patterned paper... (How cool is That?!)

And I am also excitedly sharing the publication of this card in a magazine out of the UK,  "Digital Crafting Essentials Vol. 2" which includes a CD full of digital images, one of which is this Lovely Lady designed by Wendy of Handmade Harbour and which is currently only available through the magazine. 

This card represents the achievements of so many things for me and I have been waiting and waiting to be able to share this bit of news with all of you as my work is now being viewed in the UK (Big GIANT Smile).

Note: This magazine ships world wide with a Canadian/US shipping charge of less than $10... you can check out their site HERE.

So pop on over to the Handmade Harbour Blog to see what the design team created and since you are already there why not link up one of your own creations?

You will be eligible to win the Handmade Harbour winner's badge for your blog AND if you use one of the H.H. digital stamps in your project you will be eligible to win three more digis of your choice, so come play...it's fun!

Cheers

Scrapbook Lynne Mizera

Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers Challenge #4 - Puff Bunnies!!

Hello EVERYBODY!!! It's that time again... the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers is hosting Challenge #4 and this week it is: "F" is for Fancy Fold ... Create something using a fancy fold or some kind of folding technique and link it up to this week's challenge to be elligible to win the awesome "Queen of Snark" or "Princess of Snark" blinky for your blog (grin).  You have until April 4th to link up for this particular challenge.

Now folding is way outside my box, but a brief search requesting "folding videos" took me to a whole SWACK of origami sites with wonderful instructions, even for beginners like me. And with  Spring in the air how could I NOT pick these super cute, not too-hard-to-make PUFF BUNNIES!

And the really fun part is that after you have made all the folds, you get to inflate your bunny like a balloon.... hence the term Puff Bunny! Here are even MORE photos!

They were so easy make, and so addictively satisfying that what started out as one Puff Bunny soon became a Couple, then a Family, then Several Families, then a Neighborhood and now I'm being OVERRUN! Help Meeeeee!!! (grin)

But these little cuties gave me a use for all those pompoms and googly eyes I bought at the dollar store last year (grin), although they are even totally cute "naked" (well you HAVE to give it a cotton-tail ...smile)

The folding was pretty simple, especially with these wonderful printable instructions I found at a site called Origami Fun  (links to PDF instructions HERE).  The most difficult part was figuring out the "pockets" you need to tuck your flap into, so I have photographed it for you below. 

Fold top flaps in two steps, first stright down and then over to create the tabs (see below)

 

Open up the "pocket" using something like a bone folder

tuck tab into pocket - on each side

And after making many, many bunnies here are all my folding tips:

1. Start LARGE... the smaller the bunny the harder it is to fold.

2. Use perfectly square sheets of thin paper, scrapbooking paper is not ideal but the really thin paper works better than the thicker paper.  I will be looking for true Origami paper in the future.

3. Fold carefully and exactly, trimming after the first folds if the paper isn't exactly square.  The more clean and crisp your folds the more perfect your bunny will turn out.

4. Use the edge of your fingernail or a bone folder after every fold step to help to make your creases very flat. 

5. When you are folding the ears down (step 15) start at the point near the nose using your fingernail to make a small crease at the "point" then fold your paper from that place allowing the fold to follow it's natural angle away from the body... this will create lovely perfect ears.

Here is the bunny, with ears unfolded, just before you puff him up

6. When you have completed all the folding steps you need to Puff Out your bunny by holding the bottom two flaps, one in each hand and putting your DRY lips on its nose and giving a very sharp "puff" of air to inflate your bunny... you may need to do this a second time to get your bunny to fully inflate.

I am providing my paper measurements for you:

6" squares = Dad, 5" Squares = Mom, 4" squares= big sister, 3.5" squares = baby brother

Well Thanks for "Hopping" by today to see my stuff... I hope you like them enough to try to make one or two yourself. (Smile)

Scrapbook Lynne

It's "Time" for Some Mixed Media!

Hello everyone, Lynne here today for my Susan K. Weckesser Design Team post, and I am sharing my latest re-purposed item, a $3 clock I found in my local second-hand store.  I LOVE combing second-hand stores and garage sales to find those overlooked treasures that I can make new again.  As I am packing up my studio getting ready to move, several of these treasures have been revealed, like this lovely little clock that I found stashed at the back of large storage cabinet. 

Now I wish I had taken a photo of the original clock (which was all black and quite chipped) so that you can see the amazing transformation it has made, but since I didn't I will just focus on this lovely new Mixed Media Clock.  To me "mixed media" means mixing different techniques and different products to produce a new item and that is what I did today.

To start I dismantled my clock which came apart quite easily into three pieces - a case, a board with the clock elements attached and a back cover.  Next I removed all three hands of the clock, which pulled off quite easily, and put them somewhere safe.  

Then, using Susan's Live in Color paper line, I cut and pasted to create a mini, three-dimensional page on the clock face, making sure that the hands of the clock would be able to easily pass above my items on their way around the dial.  As always, a layer of Ranger's Stickles and Close to my Heart Liquid Glass finished off my new clock face background.

I then painted the case and back cover, making sure the glass face was protected with masking tape. I used a crackle medium to create the weathered wood look - something I have been wanting to try - and it was surprisingly EASY! The hardest part of the entire process was choosing what colors to use for my base coat and main coat, so I used my back cover as a test piece...which is why the front and back have two slightly different looks.  I ended up choosing a dark turquoise as my base and a lighter teal as my main coat.

To create the crackle effect, all you need to do is paint each piece three times; first with a base coat, then with the crackle medium, and lastly with your final color.  It is REALLY important the you allow each coat to dry thoroughly before painting on the next layer.  I did use my heat gun to speed up the process slightly, but I gave each coat at least 30 minutes before proceeding to the next step. 

Now to get lovely crackling here's what I have learned:  1) the third coat is easier to apply if the paint is little bit thinner, so I add a tiny bit of water to make it the consistency of milk, rather than cream.  2) that you don't need a lot of paint to get lovely cracks, and 3) try to NOT to paint over an already painted area, it just clumps up.

The cracking happens as the paint dries, so if your paint is thin it happens quickly and you get large cracks, if your paint is thick it takes longer and the cracks are more subtle.  After everything had dried I painted one more time with ModPodge to add a few more paper elements to the clock frame and to seal the clock.

Now that I have discovered how easy it is to get this look, I foresee a lot more re-purposed furniture in my future (smile).  Note:  I used a crackle medium by Plaid which I picked up at my local WalMart, a large 8oz bottle was only $9.00.

Thanks for stopping by today, and I hope you remember this post the next time you visit your local second-hand store!

Design Team Member Lynne Mizera

Products used on this project:
Susan K. Weckesser Live in Color cardstock
Plaid Folkart Crackle Medium
Golden Fluid Acrylic Paint: Titanium White; Cobalt Turquois; Teal
Zip Dry Scrapbook Glue
Ranger Stickles
CTMH Liquid Glass
Glossy ModPodge
Foam Pop Dots

Lots of Love with Handmade Harbour

Today at Handmade Harbour Papercraft Party the theme is "Lots of Love" and I created this sweet little card using the Handmade Harbour "Owl and Baby" digital stamp:

I used my copic markers to color this image, choosing soft browns and greens with a hint of yellow and orange as my color base.

Then I fussy cut-out my image and I actually cut off the bodies from the legs and then glued the branch and legs down flat and popped the bodies off the card... I love the dimension that this gives my owls, don't you?

I've become more and more confident with my own doodling, so I used my white gel pen to write out my sentiment, tracing a circle to create a faint line to follow so my wording stayed perfectly balanced. Then I used a glittery gold gel pen to add some doodles to fill in my circle, which now frames my image.

And of course a touch of stickles and liquid glass to finish it all off.  I really like how this card turned out, especially all the love that is coming through the eyes of this wee owl family.  So why not pop on by to see what the rest of the design team crated for the Papercraft Party over at Handmade Harbour this week, and why not join in... link up a creation of your own following our "Lots of Love" theme.  You could win our badge for you blog AND if you use a Handmade Harbour Digi you will also be eligible to win a prize of three digis of your choice!  Come on... it's sooo fun (smile).

Thanks for stopping by today to see what I am up to, and don't forget to leave me a comment if you like what you see!

Cheers! Scrapbook Lynne Mizera

"P" is for Paddy's Day... Grin

It's time for our Bi-monthly chuckle with another "Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers" challenge and being March of course it is has to be related to St. Patrick's Day doesn't it?  

Here is my cute little St. Paddy's Day card:

 I have to say that there are a LOT of really cute, slightly sarcastic St. Paddy's Day quotes and sayings... but this one really spoke to me (grin), 
Did you know that I am one quarter Irish? (bigger Grin)

Now for those of you that want to know I kinda cheated on this card using some free clip art printed out onto 100lbs card stock, I then cut out and "popped" the foam heads, using foam pop dots (no pun intended) and then I used a combination of frosted lace stickles and white liquid pearl to get that "real foam" look... makes you want one REALLY BAD doesn't it?

So pop on over to the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers Blog to see what my teammates created, you will be glad you did because for this challenge they really out did themselves (smile). And why not link up one of your own creations... It can be anything related to the challenge and you do not have to use stamps if you don't want to.  AND you have two weeks, until March 21st, to link up. Besides, you could win one of these awesome badges for your blog - because who doesn't want to be the Queen or Princess of Snark? Grin

I'm linking up this card to the following challenges - wish me luck...smile:
Open-Minded Crafting Fun Challenge #5 - Use something Green

613 Avenue Create: (A Weekly Challenge Community) Challenge #63 Anything goes with a twist/use an Irish blessing, saying or quote

Thanks for stopping by to see what I created today, and please leave me some "blog lovin'" in the form of a comment if you like what you see, I just LOVE hearing from you!

Scrapbook Lynne Mizera 

Challenge YOUrself #4 - Keep Calm and....

Can you BELIEVE it's already our fourth challenge over at Challenge YOUrself? It has gone by so fast, and I just love that I already have FOUR layouts scrapbooked this year All About MEEE! (grin) For our 4th challenge we are asking:

What drives you?  What makes you happy?    

Is it hanging with the family and friends, gardening, shopping, running, reading, working, traveling, etc... 

Challenge YOUrself #4: Keep Calm And __________

Create a layout using the quote "Keep Calm and______" (fill in the blank)

<<<  Cannot be scrapbooking related!  >>>  

AND Remember to include YOU in the photo ;)

Now if you find you need some inspiration check out all these lovely images in Google....

To be honest at first this challenge was a bit of a struggle for me until I really looked at all the photos of ME I wanted to use and then it became so OBVIOUS!.... (don't you think?)

For this layout I used ONE piece of Bo-Bunny card stock, my colored sharpie markers and a black and white gel pen.  That's IT because I hand-doodled all the rest... SO COOL!

I guess I could have also used "eat on" or "drink on" but the common theme for me is laughter...

And if you have ever met me you will know this to be TRUE, TRUE, TRUE!

So please pop on over to the CHALLENGE YOURSELF Blog to see what my teammates created... and why not add one of your own layouts to our challenge this month?  You have until April 5th to link up and there is a lovely little prize pack of embellishments from Glitz for our top pick!

Thanks for stopping by today to see what I am up too, and leave me some "blog love" in the form of a comment if you like what you see!

Cheers Scrapbook Lynne Mizera

The Supreme Scrap Tournament - ROUND 3!

Yup ... I made it through to Round 3 in the International Supreme Scrap Tournament - the layout competition divisiom, which absolutely blew me away because the talent level is so amazing out there.  And the luck gods are with me because the challenge for Round 3 is to DOODLE your layout... and you all know that I have been working on my doodling all year...Grin.  We also have to use 4 photos (2 of which have doodling on them), no people allowed - not even a part of a people.... NO Flowers and NO letter stickers, cut outs, rub-ons, or stamping... only a hand-written or Doodled Title and at least 20 words of hand-written journaling... So HERE IT IS - my entry for Round 3:

So Here I am in Fort McMurray babysitting grand kids for a week when the new rules come down for Round 3 and all I have with me are my colored Sharpies (markers) and my zentangle pens Thank Goodness! because that's all I need.... 

And here is a brief pictorial of it's birth and a little bit about Why drinking Wine and Doodling may not always be the best combination.... grin!

I had an idea right away... Night #1 here is the bones

On night #2 I doodled zentangle patterns inside my heart and added my photos, and jazzed up the title a bit ... not bad, but then I had a second glass of wine and decided to add some some bubbles...

ON night #3 I just kept making more and more bubbles, and even MORE bubbles ...

So then I had a second glass of wine and tried to balance the bubbles with some lines, and more lines and OOOPS... Now WHAT!  well I didn't want to start all over .... so I put it away until I got home last night and I cut out all the elements that I LOVED....

and re-assembled them .... fussy cutting and pop dots and liquid glass... so much better without ALL THOSE BUBBLES don't you think? and SOOOO Me!

  So wish me LUCK... I'll find out if I make to Round 4 next week!
Scrapbook Lynne Mizera

Do What you LOVE... at Handmade Harbour

Hello everyboday! Today for the Handmade Harbour Papercraft Party the theme is RED, WHITE and/or Blue... and feeling very patriotic this week after watching our Canadian Olympians for 10 days I Chose to go RED & WHITE (Go CANADA!) grin

and the sentiment on this particular "Do What you Love" Handmade Harbour digital stamp is just perfect don't you think?

I sized two digital images for a 5x7 card and then printed and colored them... I fussy cut some key elements from the the first image and then "popped" them off the base image using foam pop dots to adhere them.

 

I used some long forgotten embossing folders from my cuttlebug stash and layered the digital image over top... I just love using red and white - it is so vibrant!  As always a layer of stickles and liquid glass finishes it all off for me...

So pop on by to the Handmade Harbour Papercraft Party this week to see what the design team has created and why not join in?

Cheers from

Scrapbook Lynne Mizera