Plastic Challenge!

I participated in my first Challenge last month!! It was so fun to use my out-of-the-box ideas that I have stored in my head! There are so many things from around the house that I spare from having to go into the trash, with the idea that "hey I could use that for scrapbooking". I have stashes of what some may consider "junk" but they are all endless possibilities to create something fab in my mind!

My example of my trash to treasure today is many plastic items I have saved from the circular file!!! Donna Downey has a monthly newsletter that you can sign up for here. The March "Trash to Treasure" challenge was to use plastic! Here was my take on the challenge!

I <3>
The album is made out of floppy disks and the binding rings were cut from plastic gift bags that had hair accessories in them (dollar store find!). I cut the handles to the size I needed and sewed the ends together with clear necklace thread (plastic maybe?).


The binding strap is made out of a ribbon, a plastic loop from a bra strap, and a plastic piece from toy packaging (you know the ones with the wire ties through it).

The metal sliders have hidden surprised in them!!

I removed the inner disk from some of the floppy’s and used them as pages. This one I wrote on with a white pen.

Peek-a-boo window with ribbon hidden inside.

I utilized this open hole and added some plastic beads!! I used the same necklace thread.

The floppy film on this page was inked with Tim Holtz alcohol inks and gives it more of a vinyl record look. A mini white…plastic button in the center as well!

The alcohol inks really showed up on the metal piece to the floppy film.

I used the hole in this disk as a frame. The Cricut image is actually inside the disk.
I added glitter to the floppy film with diamond glaze glue.

More glitter on the floppy film, and white text. There is another surprise on this page!

It is magic!!! Sorry for sloppy writing…but it’s mine!!!

This floppy film I had a layer of alcohol inks and then dabbed yellow acrylic paint on top. The pink alcohol ink blended with the acrylic paint!!! Prima flowers added on top with a plastic jem!

Another peek-a-boo window!

I punched an extra hole on the last page to tie the ribbon for the binding clasp.

On the final page I filled the empty hole with 4 scalloped circle punches that I chalked and adorned with a big plastic jem.

The ribbon charm is the adjustment strap from a bra!

Well that's it!!! I didn't win, but that's OK...I am totally proud of this baby and I am up for this month's challenge!! I will report to you next month on my recycled creation!!! Wish me luck!

It's your Birthday!!!

Birthdays, Birthdays....I've made a card or two for the occasion! Here I used two similar products but made them have a completely different look and feel by using different techniques.

The first was for my brother so I gave it a grungy, distressed and morbid feeling. I ghost stamped skulls all over the card and inked it extra dark to fit his personal style.

The second card was for my hubby! I used lots of bright colored ribbon to give it an extra celebratory feel. The holographic cardstock was from a toy package (Princess I believe).

Supplies: patterned paper by DCWV, ribbon by American Crafts.

Tinkerbell and a little decor

I just recently finished this Tinkerbell album which contains pictures that are almost 6 years old.

If you only knew how far behind I am scrapbooking....eek it makes me cringe. OK, so I technically have been a scrapbooker for 9 years (since my first daughter was born), but I haven't had any time to really work on anything between children, work, school and all the normal things that go on in life. So now that I am finally working part time from home, I have the freedom to start to catch up...pheeew!!!

Anyways this is an EK Success accordion album. I think Mya (who was 3 and is now 9) looks so stinkin cute in these pictures dressed as Tinkerbell! Shaylie didn't make a bad ballerina for her first Halloween either! I will more than likely journal on the book soon so that we can remember this all better 20 years from now when they fade from our minds!

If you look super close you may notice that some of the pictures have a seam in the middle where I have digitally overlapped 2 different scans of the album (This is the same for any other 2 page layouts I post). I do not alter the scrapbook in any way when I do this, it is just that I can't scan 2 pages at the same time, so I use Photoshop to seam the 2 scans together!!! Supplies: 6x6 accordion Tinkerbell album by EK Success; and white pom-pom's.
Supplies: Fairy Glow (green), Tinker Bell Phrase and Bubbles paper by Sandylion; Light Perfectly Plum and Dark Pretty Pink paper by WorldWin Papers; blue chipboard flower by Colorbok; yellow/blue polka dot paper flower by Prima; blue sticker button by Button Ups; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.
Supplies: Fairy Garden (purple), Tinker Bell Phrase and Butterflies paper by Sandylion; Dark Belgium Blue and Dark Luscious Lime paper by WorldWin Papers; pink iridescent paper; purple paper flower by Prima; pink and green button; green embroidery floss; purple fiber; Tinkerbell ribbon charm and purple sheer ribbon by EK Success; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.
Supplies: Fairy Garden (purple), Tinker Bell Phrase and Butterflies paper by Sandylion; Dark Belgium Blue and Dark Pretty Pink paper by WorldWin Papers; green chipboard flower by Colorbok; Tinkerbell chipboard cut from package (MacGuyver scrapbooking again!); green fiber; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.

Psst, by the way isn't that an amazing painting in the background? It is about 4'x4'! My Mommy painted it!!! She is sooooooo soooo talented....Mom you should paint more!!!

Supplies: Bubbles, Tinker Bell Phrase and Fairy Glow paper by Sandylion; Dark Luscious Lime and Light Perfect Plum paper by WorldWin Papers; pink and orange chipboard flowers by Colorbok; gem ribbon brad by Oriental Trading; pink rick rack by American Crafts; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.

Supplies: Fairy Glow (green), Tinker Bell Phrase and Bubbles paper by Sandylion; Light Perfectly Plum and Dark Pretty Pink paper by WorldWin Papers; blue chipboard flower by Colorbok; yellow/blue polka dot paper flower by Prima; blue sticker button by Button Ups; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.
Supplies: Fairy Garden (purple), Tinker Bell Phrase and Butterflies paper by Sandylion; Dark Belgium Blue and Dark Luscious Lime paper by WorldWin Papers; pink iridescent paper; purple paper flower by Prima; pink and green button; green embroidery floss; purple fiber; Tinkerbell ribbon charm and purple sheer ribbon by EK Success; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.
Supplies: Fairy Garden (purple), Tinker Bell Phrase and Butterflies paper by Sandylion; Dark Belgium Blue and Dark Pretty Pink paper by WorldWin Papers; green chipboard flower by Colorbok; Tinkerbell chipboard cut from package (MacGuyver scrapbooking again!); green fiber; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.
Supplies: Bubbles, Tinker Bell Phrase and Fairy Glow paper by Sandylion; Dark Luscious Lime and Light Perfect Plum paper by WorldWin Papers; pink and orange chipboard flowers by Colorbok; gem ribbon brad by Oriental Trading; pink rick rack by American Crafts; green and purple ink by Pretty Color; zig-zag deco scissors; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.
Supplies: 6x6 accordion Tinkerbell album by EK Success; and Tinkerbell ribbon charm and ribbon by EK Success.

I feel like I have gotten a lot done today!! Not only did we look at 9 houses today, but I got these pots done also!! If you look back to this blog entry where I show my scrapbook room you will notice them sitting there on the floor (4th pic down), unpainted. That picture was taken back in January, yes, it is about time I got these blasted things painted!

Supplies: spouncer brushes; paint brush; burnt umber and teddy bear tan by Plaid; and Varnish by Delta Ceramcoat. Yes I only used 2 colors!!!
The leftmost pot I painted with the Burnt Umber and then used a stiff spouncer brush to stroke the Teddy Bear Tan paint on. The middle pot I used a sponge spouncer to but the Teddy Bear Tan on and then I used a paintbrush that had uneven stray hairs on the tip to brush the Burnt Umber up and down about 3 brush widths. I then took the brush and stroked it side to side to give it kind of a denim look. The pot on the right I used the sponge spouncer and dabbed both colors on randomly (both individually and then mixed). I didn't like the look of it enough, so I went back over the whole thing with the stiff spouncer and did the Teddy Bear Tan first and went back over it with the Burnt Umber. I topped them all off with a coat of Varnish to keep the acrylic paint on when they get watered, so now they are nice and shiny!!!

I wanted them to match, but be different. Does this look like something you would buy in the store or does it look totally homemade??? Sometimes it is hard to tell when you made it yourself. What do you think?

Feeling Some LOVE!!!!

This 'LOVE' album was a gift to my husband for Valentine's Day. Making this book helped me to realize that we do not get our picture taken together very often...it contains almost every picture of us together that we have (minus our wedding photos). Since I am often the only photographer I am missing from our families photos (not that I like my picture taken :P).

Supplies: LOVE word album by BoBunny; misc yarns and fibers; book rings; pictures printed on Epson R1800; and Scotch ATG 714 tape gun.
Supplies: XOXO Expressions paper by Carolees Creations; word sticker (red) by 7 Gypsies; 'MY' silver glitter chipboard letters by K and Company; black Sharpie fine point marker; 'I Love you' vellum word runner by Around the Block; and black and Port Wine ink by Memories.
Supplies: All Dressed up (dot) paper by DCWV; Loves Me paper; pink flower index card by Mead collections; black cardstock by EK Success; word stickers (red) by 7 Gypsies; black Sharpie fine point marker for journaling; various stickers and glitter heart brad by Making Memories; paper flower by Prima; lace (cut from my girls' old baby socks); white thread stitched with Singer sewing machine; blue chalk; and black and Port Wine ink by Memories.

Detail of stitching on the black photo mats, not to mention a cute close up of us ;)

Supplies: XOXO Expressions paper by Carolees Creations; Heart Quotes paper; pink flower index card by Mead collections; black cardstock by EK Success; word stickers (red) by 7 Gypsies; black Sharpie fine point marker for journaling; various stickers and glitter heart brads by Making Memories; paper flower by Prima; lace (cut from my girls' old baby socks); white thread stitched with Singer sewing machine; 'I Love you' vellum word runner by Around the Block; heart sticker and 'I Love you' brads by nameless $1 store brand; pewter country heart brad by Creative Impressions; blue chalk; and black and Port Wine ink by Memories.

Supplies: Heart Quotes paper; Red quote paper; pink flower index card by Mead collections; black cardstock by EK Success; word stickers (red) and circle stickers by 7 Gypsies; black Sharpie fine point marker for journaling; various stickers and glitter heart brads by Making Memories; paper flower by Prima; white thread stitched with Singer sewing machine; metallic red country heart brad by Creative Impressions; wine colored light and lofty yarn by Red Heart; black and white polka dot flower by Petaloo; blue chalk; black plastic ribbon holder from toy packaging; and black and Port Wine ink by Memories.

The black plastic piece that is holding the yarn came from the packaging of one of the kids' toys!! You know those annoying things that have a wire twisty in them...yup that is my Mac Guyver scrapbooking skills again!!!

Supplies: Loves Me paper; All Dressed up (dot) paper by DCWV; pink flower index card by Mead collections; black cardstock by EK Success; red corrugated cardboard from a scrap pack; word stickers (red) by 7 Gypsies; black Sharpie fine point marker for journaling; red and pink gel pens to highlight 'loves me' on the paper; various stickers and glitter heart brads by Making Memories; paper flowers by Prima; white thread stitched with Singer sewing machine; 'Kiss' brads by nameless $1 store brand; lips and chocolate kisses brads by Eyelet Outlet; red heart felt stickers by Queen and Company; and black and Port Wine ink by Memories.

Techniques: I used the black Sharpie and red and pink gel pens to highlight the words "loves me" on the background paper.

Techniques: To highlight us in the photo, I used Photoshop CS3 to to outline the background image of our kitchen. I then desaturated the selection and put a filter on it (I believe pencil) to take the detail out of the selection.

Supplies: red quote paper; pink flower index card by Mead collections; word stickers (red) by 7 Gypsies; black Sharpie fine point marker for journaling; black swirl felt stickers by Queen and Company; various ribbons by American Crafts, coin charms; and black and Port Wine ink by Memories.

Techniques: I used these cute coin/token/charms that were sold with the intention of putting them on necklaces or key chains, but I thought they would be better served on my scrapbook!!

OK....Somebody Stop Me!!!!

.....Cause I've been shopping again. OK, in my defense, my main purpose was to go buy some supplies for an upcoming gift album (can't tell you yet) and to buy some paper and ribbon for some wedding invitations I am working on. And then one thing let to another and I have this pile laying before you...and some others that didn't make the shot. Three stores later and thankfully in a reasonable $$ amount thanks to the dollar store I came home with all this. The best part???? that T-shirt was FREEEEEEE!!! Yay, Thanks Marcia!!! The owner of my local scrapbook store is so sweet and generous you can check out the store I shop at most...Cherished Friends!!



In the spirit of love here is a link that is sure to inspire some tears of joy (at least it did in me!) I got it in an e-mail and I loved it so much that I had to post it here!!!

Father's Da-y Cards

I seem to always be a little off on posting themes relevant to the current dates, but someday I hope to catch up. So if you happen to view my blog for upcoming inspiration I apologize.



For my Father's Day cards I wanted to use some of my Mac Guyver scrapbooking skills to put them together. Since I don't have to worry about the archival safeness of the materials I used some items from here and there that I have been saving for this very type of project.



The corrugated paper fronts of each card came from the packaging of my husbands new BBQ grill. I used each one in a different way making each card unique, just like each man I gave it to.




For my husband, the man who holds the key to my heart, a key was the theme. For my father, fishing was the theme since he, and my mother have been doing a lot of fishing. For my father-in-law, John Deere was the hidden theme because of his love for the tractors.

Husband's Father's Day Card Front

Husband's Father's Day Card Inside
Supplies: Corrugated cardboard from Charbroil Grill box; tan cardstock; vellum; jet black ink by StazOn; Key Grungeboard by Tim Holtz; plus and minus screw top brads by Creative Impressions; grommet & setter by EK Success; white bungee from clothing tag; Antelope H. font; Photoshop Elements 2.0; Epson R1800

Father's Father's Day Card Front (ha that sounds funny)

Father's Father's Day Card Inside
Supplies: Corrugated cardboard from Charbroil Grill box; green cardstock; Brown & Green ink by Colorbox; zipper pull from old clothing; twisty ties from packaging; green Dymo tape and Dymo tagger; date stamp; raffia; fish die-cut altered from Cricut 'Dreams Come True' cartridge image; 'DAD' pre-cut alphas; nail sanding block; Antelope H. font; Photoshop Elements 2.0; Epson R1800

Father-In-Law's Father's Day Card Front
Father-In-Law's Father's Day Card InsideSupplies: Corrugated cardboard from Charbroil Grill box; tan cardstock; yellow paper; raffia; 'DAD' pre-cut alphas painted yellow; Canary Yellow and Old Ivy acrylic paint by Plaid; Green ink by Colorbox; bronze eyelets; Antelope H. font; Photoshop Elements 2.0; Epson R1800