Summer Love with Maja Design

Hello friends!

Summer is upon us! Although here in Singapore, it's nearly summer all year round. Right now, I'm enjoying a nice, cold bowl of iced fruits in syrup, catching up on summer dessert recipes, and attempting to bake a cake for the little one's birthday in a couple of days.

While all that is going on, I've a sweet, sweet treat from Maja Design to share with you. Marie has drawn up a gorgeous collection for summer and it's unbelievably cute! Today's project is one of the many that I've made from her Summer Crush collection and I can't stop making more. Here's a step-by-step on how I made the layout.

Step 1:
Summer is all about fun right? So I had these mini rosettes made using papers from the Summer Crush collection with one of my Sizzix dies and they are just too cute.



Step 2:

For some reason, straws came to mind as well and I rolled these up. Just lightly spritz with water to make the heavy patterned paper easier to roll and glue down the edges with Glossy Accents. I then brushed the ends with gel medium and dipped it into gold embossing powder.

Step 3:

I primed these chipboards from Blue Fern Studios and painted them. For the title "Love", I used 13@rts' Metallic Pink and Raspberry matt paint and blended them. For the arrow, I applied Shimmerz Texturez in Patina and went over with a layer of Silks Glaze in African Jade.

Step 4:

Assembling my paper layers and embellishments together so that I can start working on my background.

Step 5:

Spread a very thin layer of gesso over the area where I wanted to work on, followed by some stenciling with modeling paste to follow the general flow of my layout. I constantly placed my paper layers down as a guide over the stencil to see where else I should add the modeling paste.

Step 6:
Misting with Tattered Angels' Glimmer Mist (Trunk Bay) and watering it down. Some parts I painted straight from the bottle for gradations in tone. Finish with some random stamping, and start gluing everything away!




Here is the completed page:

Love the summery feel this piece has! But I have a confession - I cheated on the photo because it was taken in fall during our Perth trip. But it was the perfect kind of weather which I wish Singapore would have in summer (or throughout the year for that matter!) - balmy temperatures, refreshing breeze, blue skies dotted by little white clouds, and that amazing picnic in the park... I deliberately chose the patterned paper with the sunburst because it adds to the composition - sun rays radiating out from my main cluster and that pattern is repeated in my mini rosettes.

More details in the close-ups:

Lots of touching up with mediums.  I made more splashes with 13@rts Light Turquoise chalk mist all over the page, followed by Acrylic Splash! Ink in white. 

Everything was also given a dab of gesso for a vintage washed out look, followed by African Jade Silk glaze. And lastly, a generous patting of a yummy paste made from Gold Pearl paint and 13@rts Magic powder.

Loving the patterns and colors from the Summer Crush collection.

Another floral cluster with a metal piece and some resins.

That's all I have for today. Thanks for dropping by!

love,

Favourite Memory with Love Story

Hello friends!

I'm sneaking a little something extra mid-week for treats. This project was created with the awesome Love Story collection from Blue Fern Studios, and the papers have really made me explore colors outside of my comfort zone - namely red and black.

Here's the layout:

This is one of my favourite photos of eldest because he just looks so chubby and sweet. The photo was taken during our family trip in Taiwan when I was 6 months preggers with no. 2 and eldest was being such a good traveller. Even with his routine disrupted, he was good natured throughout the trip and on his best behavior. Even now when we travel with the two of them, they have proven themselves to be rather co-operative.

But back to the layout. I just adore the black papers (Amazing Heart) in this collection and had to use it for a background when I laid eyes upon it. I also wanted more texture here so I used a few different types of pastes on top of the acrylic primer from 13@rts. Then I sealed in some beads of different sizes with liquid medium. To soften the glare of the white gesso, I used my pink Pan Pastel over everything for a softer cast. Then it was on to a technique that I have not used for awhile - splattering.  Lots of it. And I used the lovely Texture Stamp set (hooray!) for some really subtle details in the background.

I also wanted to keep my paper layers neutral with all the colors in the embellishments and background, so I kept to the beige tones and the black and white designs (Sweet Song, Concerto).

Some close-ups:

One of Blue Fern Studios' chipboards (Buttons and Bows) that I altered. Realised that I have not used my Dazzlerz and Texturez for awhile now so out those came. For the flowers, I used fibre paste and colored them with a mixture of Primary Elements and Inklingz.

Layering of trinkets, flowers and die cut leaves. 

One of the most tedious titles I've ever done. Note to self - think before acting. I had a Technique Tuesday stamp set with this quote but this little smart alec wanted to be different and use a combination of Thickers and stamping for a title. Do the stamping and embossing first you say? Didn't get the memo. And glued down the Thickers before I thought of the otherwise. The result was a most painful process of aligning words and making sure the EP doesn't get everywhere.

Never doing this again. 

Love the mix sized beads, pastes and string.

Tattered diamonds chipboard which I also repeated the design in my stamping. It was first a layer of black EP followed by black lava from Liquitex. Couldn't resist using the canvas cloth frills again.

So that's all I have for today, thanks for dropping by. Come back tomorrow to check out a new card I created!

love,

February Mood Board Reveal 2 for OTRS

Hello friends!

In again today with a little card I made for the Feb mood board challenge over at Off the Rails Scrapbooking. Here's the gorgeously colored mood board:

Below is how I put everything together.

Step 1

I started off with a sheet of white cardstock (12" x 6") and folded it into half. Taking some papers from Maja Design, I trimmed them further into 2 sizes for layering - 5.75" x 5.75", and 5" x 5". Distress the edges and ink them.

Step 2

Take some distress stain and paint (I used the same shade) and color the edges of the white cardstock. Ink the edges again.

Step 3

Adhere the 3 layers together. I also added some twine underneath the second layer for a nice little bow later. Twine also because I saw the balloons in the image and the strings they were drifting from.

Step 4

To make my floral paper a little more interesting, I added some modeling paste over a stencil.

Step 5

And some splatters of color by mixing paint with liquid medium, both from 13@rts.

Step 6

Adding a die cut doily with the edges inked.

Step 7

Scrounge up a piece of canvas cloth and glue it onto the card, followed by pompom trim. I added the canvas for a fabric texture, which I figured the lady in the image must have been a fashionista (from the oversized sunnies of course!). Pompoms because they look like cute little balloons.

Step 8

Colored a piece of mini flourish chipboard (Blue Fern Studios) with a few different types of pigments. Assemble everything else (flowers, embellishments etc) and voila!

You can see the purple, deep red, pink and just a tiny bit of green. 

I didn't have anything stickers with "awesome" in it, so I guess being yourself is another way of being awesome :D

The Eiffel Towel trinket was just begging to be used after being hoarded for so long!

So that's all I have for today. Do check in with the blog for more details on the challenge!

love,

February mood board reveal for SATW

Hello lovelies and welcome to the month of February!

To kick start this gorgeous month (it's a great month because we have a few days of holidays coming up), here's a rustic nature mood board from Scrap Around the World.

Here is the mood board created by Tatyana Sidorenko from Belarus:


and our rules:

My take on it:

I was inspired by the wooden broad walk, the Instagram-filter-ish colors of green, yellow and gold (I spy gold in almost everything now) and of course the abundance of nature. To the point that I researched on where I can take a suitable photo and ushered the whole troop, together with another family to the said location for a picnic. Talk about going the extra mile for your photos!

Some close-ups: 

I liked the wooden broad walk and brought home some sticks from the park to make my little twine bundle (I'm into those now). Lots of textures here with canvas strips, gauze, glass beads, ceramic stucco paste (on the picket fence chipboard from Blue Fern Studios) and modeling paste. My background colors were created with the following: mists, modeling paste and gesso from 13@rts, Twinkling H2Os and Lindy's Stamp Gang Magicals, and white embossing powder. I also did some stamping around the main cluster. You can also see that for once, I used only one single sheet of patterned paper and this is from BFS' Ombre Dreams collection. 

My cluster made up of flowers, resin, glass pebbles and chipboards.

Love this little toadstool piece from BFS! There are lots of colors on this one all blended in nicely.  To finish up the layout, I sprayed 13@rts gold pearl and clear pearl mists for shimmer and some drips, as well as a coat of Silk Glaze in Iridescent Gold for more shine.

And on to our prizes!

ALL OUR PRIZES ALWAYS INCLUDE FREE INTERNATIONAL POSTAGE!!

1ST PRIZE

$50 worth of chipboard 2Crafty Chipboard!

{Below is only a sampling - you will receive

 a good selection of latest designs!}

2Crafty chipboard Australian owned & operated and wholesaler 

Laser cut chipboard products, located in Sydney, Australia. We were

 in operation since October 2006, and more than 1,000 projects on offer.

We are proud that the quality of products, which are universal and up to date 

market trends, as well as offering unsurpassed customer service, 

with the rapid turnover of jobs large and small. Visit our website  HERE .

We are pleased to quote for personalized jobs, whether it's a single title  for 

buyers, or large jobs for retreats, classes, etc. If you are a retail business 

And would like to stock our range of unique products, please contact us

 for more information. Please see more details on our blog  HERE !

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2nd place

OVER $ 35 worth of product  7 Dots Studio !
EXACTLY as shown below

7 Dots Studio was born from a dream and dreams. 

We scrapbooking European manufacturer of  high 

quality  scrapbooking products - paper, stickers, die-cuts,

 collage sheets,  6x6 blocks, collecting sets and chipboard.

Our collections are amazingly talented artists - 

from pure, graphic designs in a mixed media collage grungy look. 

The fact that you can always be sure of are high quality and thickness

 our newspapers,  which makes them ideal for all types of media.

 Among our products you will find a clear stamp sets coordination 

our collections to make them more interesting and versatile.

We surprisingly happy and feel very blessed to see how many

 our products  like craftsmen and artists from around the world!

If you would like to see more amazing inspiration from  our design team

Please visit our blog  HERE , our Facebook page  HERE  and follow us on

Twitter  HERE , Pinterest  HERE  and Instagram {7DOTSSTUDIO}.

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3rd place

$30 gift certificate from  Creative Embellishments !

Creative Decoration is a family-owned company, established

Michael and Nicole Kramer, a husband and wife team who design

 And the production of unique, high-quality chipboard, wood, rubber stamps 

flair and products. We have been in operation since September 2013. 

It is our mission to offer a fun and inspiring products that can be added to

 any project to bring out your inner creativity! In the near future we will 

expand into other media such as acrylic and stencil decorations.

 We also custom cut for individual orders and have a wholesale shop 

retail package clubs and classes. Shopping  here ! If you have 

store sign up for our wholesale section  HERE . Check out our
blog  HERE  and follow us on Instagram  HERE  and Youtube HERE .

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4th prize

$ 25 worth of Product from  UmWowStudio !
{You will receive a great selection of latest product -
image is for visual purposes only & not identical to your prize!}

UmWowStudio is an innovative embellishment company located in

 Las Vegas, Nevada. With chipboard, flair & stencils currently in

 Their  Product line (& more fun things on the way!) They span across

 All bits  of paper crafting, Including memory saving, Card making,

 tags,  stamping, Mixed Media, art journaling & more!

Shop with us HERE , follow Our Blog  HERE  & LIKE us on Facebook

HERE ! Our follow boards on Pinterest  HERE  & Youtube  HERE !!

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5TH PRIZE

$ 20 worth of product from  13arts
{Image for display purposes only -you will 
receive a random selection of luscious stuff!}

13arts is a Polish manufacturer specialising in scrapbook papers, 

embellishments & artistic mediums. See our store HERE where

we ship worldwide!  Our blog HERE is full of inspiration & we

 have a monthly challenge where all our welcome!

Follow us on Instagram HERE, Twitter HERE & Facebook

 HERE & remember to follow us on Pinterest HERE too!!

---------------------------------

6TH PRIZE

$ 15 worth of Product from Studio75
{Exactly as shown below}

Studio75 is a Polish manufacturer of scrapbooking papers & items 

such as  chipboard albums, Notebooks, spiral bindings & magnetic sheets.  

We have Our ​​own Online store  HERE , A Bustling Facebook Page  HERE

 Highly inspirational & A Blog  HERE  - Come & visit us - Let's Connect!

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7TH PRIZE

15 Euros worth of Product from Scrap-Unlimited
{You will receive a surprise selection of BEAUTIFUL goodies!}

Scrap-Unlimited is a craft supplies manufacturer from The Netherlands,

creating & selling the most amazing selection of embellishments for the

crafting industry. We offer shabby chic, vintage & steampunk inspired 

embellishments, ribbon, flowers, metals, mini-books & mini novelty items.  

Check out Our Online store  HERE  SO MUCH MORE for!  

LIKE us on Facebook  HERE  & follow Our Highly

 inspirational Blog  HERE  & Our Pinterest board  HERE .

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8TH PRIZE

15 EURO gift voucher from Mixed Media Place

Mixed Media Place is a treasure chest of different media for creative minds,

carrying a wide variety of embellishments & tools to get your projects going. 

The World of Mixed Media is A PLACE of limitless Possibilities - 
 we are here to help you to spread your wings & fly! 

Find Our Blog  HERE , LIKE us on Facebook  HERE , follow our boards
 on Pinterest  HERE  & do your shopping  HERE !

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9TH PRIZE

17.50 Euros worth of products from Danafix, France. 

{Choose your set of 5 + 1 copics HERE!}

www.copicmarqueurs.com  is an Online store 100% dedicated to all 

Copic products. All Copic products made & assembled by the European

 importer are available in stock & we offer fast, international delivery!

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10TH PRIZE

Over $ 15 worth of product !! 
Courtesy of Our design team! 
{This month from Tusia Lech }

Pocket Life Kit from Art Workshop Kit Club. Worth 24 EUROS!

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RANDOM PRIZE

Scrapbook Kit from Scraps OF ELEGANCE KIT CLUB

Random Winner will always receive the previous month's kit
from Scraps of Elegance, valued at a whopping $ 36.95 !!

Scraps of Darkness & Scraps of Elegance  are monthly Scrapbook Kit Clubs
 That  cater to scrapbookers WHO are looking for an alternative to what Other 
Kit Clubs  Offer.   Our kits are designed for Artists WHO Wish to Take scrapbooking
 to A Level  beyond.   We Strive to include the latest & Greatest Items on the Market
 That Will  enable you   to create not "just A Layout", But A work of art. 

Visit Our Blog  HERE , Our Store  HERE  & Sign up for Our kits  HERE  &  HERE !

Please LIKE us on Facebook  HERE , follow Our boards on Pinterest  HERE  ,

Subscribe to Our Youtube channel  HERE  & Find Our tutorials  HERE !!

We would LOVE to connect with you !!!

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FOLLOWERS COMPETITION PRIZE

TO WIN OUR FOLLOWERS COMPETITION YOU NEED TO BE AN OFFICIAL 
BLOG FOLLOWER - TO DO THIS SIGN UP SO YOUR THUMBNAIL IMAGE
APPEARS IN OUR GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT FOLLOWERS GADGET 
RIGHT AT THE TOP OF OUR LEFT HAND SIDEBAR.

It looks like this...

THEN YOU NEED TO COMMENT ON ANY OF OUR BLOG POSTS THIS MONTH!
ONE WINNER PER MONTH WILL BE CHOSEN FROM OUR BLOG COMMENTERS
BUT FIRST WE WILL CHECK THAT YOU ARE ALSO AN OFFICIAL FOLLOWER!

THIS IS A WAY TO WIN WITHOUT EVEN ENTERING OUR CHALLENGE!
SIMPLY BY SHOWING YOUR SUPPORT & COMMENTING!!

SaCrafters offers variety of chipboard,sturdy wood products (suitable for mixed media), 

stencils, embellishments& alterable items.  We cut our own product to ensure great quality

 & affordable prices! . Every month we come out with exciting new products, perfect for

 scrapbooking, card making, mini album making, mixed media & altered projects.

 If you would like to customize your order, please feel free to contact us via our Facebook 

page.  Visit our blog, Youtube channel, Facebook page, & Facebook group (a community 

full of amazing crafters) to share your creativity & be inspired!  Shop our store HERE!!

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The deadline for this challenge is SATURDAY 28th FEBRUARY 2015.

Enjoy February & Happy Scrapping!

Come back on the 8th to see who will WIN our January Challenge!

From now on we will always have our top 10 Wall of Famers
{our winner plus our 9 finalists} PLUS 10 Honourable Mentions,
 one random winner AND a Followers Competition Winner.

THAT'S 12 AWESOME PRIZES EVERY MONTH!!

So that's all I have for you for today. I hope you are inspired by the DT's work as well and will see your entry in soon! Thanks again for dropping by.

love,