Sunday, February 21, 2010

Photo Project


A few posts back I promised a look at my latest project. I was inspired to create this project by a photograph in Elizabeth Kartchner's new book. My husband was kind enough to construct the shelves, I did the painting and filled and arranged the frames. I am so happy to have this completed. I have had the photos sitting in a large pile since the week before my surgery back in September! I collected random frames, and painted them all with a black gloss spray paint. I was thrilled to see the inspiration for this photo arrangement as it saved me the trouble of placing all the photos individually. Just a little moulding and some paint and we have a beautiful photo display in our family room. I think this corner begs for a leather Pottery Barn chair, don't you?

Creative Space

       
My creative space is ever evolving. I add, take away, add some more, then rearrange. Sometimes I spend more time rearranging that creating! Here's a glimpse at my creative space. I love spending time in here. Especially when it's clean and the house is quiet. Where do you create? What makes it special?

I especially love my wrapping area. I don't get to use it as often as I'd like, but it's really nice to have everything in one place. There's nothing better than getting a very well thought out gift - right down to the wrapping.

I love mixing old and new in my space. It's also really important to me to have things out, for me the rule - outa site, outa mind totally applies. So if it's out I'll use it. Naturally everything cannot be on display, just the stuff I reach for most often. Every couple of months I'll go through each drawer and container and I'll usually say things like, "oh, that's where that went!" or "I totally forgot that I had this!" It's always a bit like Christmas!




Saturday, February 20, 2010

Old and New...

So today I was cleaning out a few boxes in my creative space and I discoved an old set of reference manuals - the covers of these books were super unattractive, they just begged to be covered, so I set out to do just that. It was so easy and I think it makes for a nice presentation. One of the books contained quotes so I thought I'd make use of that one by pulling the binding off and then I tied the pages together with some cotton string. To cover the books, I used some beautiful paper (Stampin' Up!) designed by my friend, and former co-worker, Patti. I love that I've taken these books that would have gone in the trash and made them into something really great to look at. I will use the loose pages for die-cuts and punches. If you look carefully you can see some of the punched pieces scattered about. I hope this will inspire you to look at old things in new ways. Happy Creating!

The 'R's Have it...


Over the last 8 years I've collected the R's you see in the photo. It started with some letterpress letters found at a local antique shop and grew from there! These R's have come from far and wide to reside in my craft room. My sweet mom even embroidered the framed R you see in the photo. Too fun!

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Here's a quick project that I did today. I gathered some pictures from Christmas 2008 and placed each of them on tags purchased at a craft store. Then added some interest with stamps (Stampin' Up!) and other accessories. This is part of a larger project that my DH helped me with over the weekend. You'll have to wait a bit to see the project completed! Stay tuned!

Pillows and Patterns


Pillows, patterns, and flowers to die for! I just watched a segment on a local tv show about making the beautiful flowers on these pillows. I just love them! Hmmmm... I feel a new challenge coming on...

Monday, February 15, 2010

A Charming Challenge...

I challenged myself this week by stretching out of my comfort zone. I love pretty things, but I also love graphic and clean design. I enjoy creating things that look simple at the onset but after further discovery you realize the project was a bit more involved. So here's my latest creation using the Stampin' Up! Jewelry and the set designed to work with it, Charming. Hope you like it. I will enjoy wearing it :)

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

A Fancy Challenge. . .










I finally finished a project that has been eating at me for months, this jewelry board. I recycled an old frame, filled it with cork and batta boom, batta bing, a jewelry board! I embellished it with a fabric flower and a 'vintage' button. The flower was made using the Stampin' Up! flower folds sissix die - so easy and sooo fun!

As for the fancy part, I've included a preview of a fun Valentine in a fabric envelope. I created the envelope using the scallop envelope die. I just adhered the sides with fabric glue. The Love Bandit Stamp Set is one of my favorites so I had to use it on the card. Hope you like it.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

The first challenge, complete!




So here's the result of my first challenge. I knew when I picked up this floral frog that it would find a place in this lovely domed stand (Pottery Barn). And what better use than to hold a little project! I used some beautiful Stampin' Up! stamps. I hope you will be inspired to tackle a few projects of your own. Next up, a fabulous jewelry board. Can't wait to share!

A Good Challenge. . .


I love to collect things - things that I have every intention of using and never seem to find the time to tackle! Recently I was lucky enough to travel to a little gem of a town, Old Towne Orange in California. A pleasant little community that houses plenty of wonderful antique shops! My friends, Amy and Paula led me to this adorable little floral frog (bottom right). The challenge was to use at least one of the collected items in the photo. I plan to use each item in the shot until all projects are tackled successfully!
I hope you enjoy the result!