pretty little things

so now that CHA is done and i can keep my cyber-clothes on (see the last post and you'll understand why you should now feel safe in your own home) it's time to actually create something!

this month's design team project was all about authentique paper's new line "journey". in honor of trips and summer time, i created a suitcase full of memories. i took a stack of paper bags and turned them into a minibook stuffed full of cards, with plenty of room for loose photos and keepsakes.

check out the details - each card features something different. we've got acrylic tags, flocking, "sugaring", ribbon distressing as well as my traditional ripping and inking. all of the cards fit into the chipboard suitcase made from tim holtz's alteration die.

in the center of the minibook is a spread made with one of my favorites from the paper line, a little bit of prima bling, and a tim holtz tissue tape flower.

my favorite card is this one with "sugaring" around the edges, and custom tinted flower ribbon using tim holtz distress ink and ribbon flowers.

look closely at this ocean-inspiring swirl - it's actually flocked! i fell in love with "sparkly fluff" from "our craft lounge, which i came across at last year's scrapbook expo. note the tiny - and real (!) sea star too!

both the tags on the suitcase, and the tags here are made ala t!m holtz, using his acrylic tags adhered over authentique papers.

i love this fold-out - so reminiscent of maps! imagine tucking tiny picks in this multi-fold "map", tucked into the minibook

hope you enjoy the techniques featured. the combination of authentique papers and tim holtz embellishments made for an awesome exploration and a beautiful minibook, if i do say so myself!

yes, i have become a contest slut

so this is my first big "scrapbook industry year". up until now i have been one of the ink-stained masses, innocently shopping the local scrapbook store, not aware that there was a whole crazy scrapbook industry out there working tirelessly to get my attention as well as my dollars.

now however, i've moved up a level. no longer only an innocent ink-stained consumer, i'm now on a design team, i "like" scrapbook companies on facebook, and i have a blog. this also means i've been initiated into the mysteries of CHA, "sneak peeks", and swag contests.

it started out innocently enough. companies asking me to "like" them, post comments and share them, use their badges on my blog and facebook page, and write about them on my blog. it's fabulous. i entered one about my best/worst glitter experience and won - thanks jack&cat curio.

and now i can't seem to stop from throwing myself out there again and again.

which leads me to my latest contest...the gals at glitz design are launching three new and very beautiful lines at CHA this week - notice how i sound like a pro now - and while pink and blue would not normally be my first paper pull, i have to admit that their "beautiful dreamer" line is...well..dreamy.

the papers themselves look gorgeous - pinks, blues, browns, with that vintage distressed look that makes me all goosebumplie. but even better is the huge amount of embellishments available as well - journaling and title stickers, ribbons, jewels, tiny sticker letters and even a chipboard album. my favorites are the "whatnots" and "peek-a-boos"

so yes, i know i am selling myself like a naughty little contest slut. but hey, i get to satisfy myself, and you get an instant preview into a new line, and maybe even a new-to-you company. so we all go home winners!

sneak peak overload

so it's CHA season - that's Craft & Hobby Association for the uninitiated - and that means it is SNEAK PEAK WEEK. this is the week that all of the scrapbook vendors show peaks of their new lines via their websites, blogs and facebook pages. it also means contests. lots and lots of contests.

at this point i've entered so many i've lost track and now can't remember where i need to check to see if i've won any fabulous free swag.

in spite of my mild confusion, i did want to take a moment to list out a whole bunch of sneak peaks for you, my fabulous fans, so that you don't have to randomly search the internet, googling your fingers off trying to find who's premiering what this week like some cyber-hobo looking for change.

so here in no particular order are links to new and beautiful products for you to drool over, or if you're like me, to criticize the hell out of. happy browsing!

Tattered Angels - they aren't actually sneaking peaks but you can virtual glimmer mist a new product on their site!
Prima Marketing - they are linked to the Tattered Angels site, but they seem to be the scrooge of sneak peaks - i know they have them but after going through 4 diff links still wasn't sure i actually found them. not good for a company with "marketing" in their name.
Tim Holtz
Graphic 45
Bella Blvd
Authentique Paper
Claudine Hellmuth
Pink Paislee
Cosmo Cricket

pardon me while i glue myself to the table

so insomnia, creative outbursts, and glue, just shouldn't mix. witness the fact that i am wide awake at a god awful hour of the morning with my elbow glued to...

but let's go back a bit shall we?

it all started at 1:00am, when my brain, as it should have been drifting off to dream about russell crowe, instead started thinking of cool make-and-take ideas and promptly went into overdrive. ink...glue...stamps...distressing...more ink...a skeleton...because it's not good unless there's a skeleton involved...more glue...

by 1:30am i had given up trying to sleep, and frankly the snoring husband and saint bernard next to me just weren't helping anyway.

at 1:35am i am happily seated at the crafting table and i'm thinking "hey, this is great! i'm alone, it's quiet, i can do anything i want..." so i start fiddling with things. looking at papers, opening every stamp drawer, poking my ink pads to see what happens.

after a few minutes of generally farting around, i actually get my groove. i'm die cutting, inking and stamping, distressing edges, tearing open every embellishment drawer looking for that cool little trinket that will make this the best make-and-take ever!

and then i find it...the perfect button, plus some crystals to make it bling bling. i just pour on the glue, add the crystals and wait for it to dry before attaching it to my make-and-take and reveling in my creative awesomeness.

and then i rest my chin in my hands for a bit, thinking about how fabulous i am and how this will be the best make-and-take ever.

and when it's time to glue the fabulous bling bling thing to the make-and-take it is also time to discover...

i have glued my sleeve to the table.

so the moral of the story is that i should probably not drink so much caffeine, and stay the hell in bed instead of wandering around the house affixing myself to stuff.

i'm feeling so authentique!

my continuing adventures as a scrapbook store design team member have taken me from discovering new creative heights, to teaching my first class, to peaking this month with one of my projects getting taken to CHA by a very cool and groovy vendor - more on that tomorrow.

so each month i get a pizza box of joy, plain white on the outside but filled with color and texture on the inside.

this month's adventure is "authentique" - the new paper company everyone has been waiting for. i was lucky enough to get a whole pizza box full of their "journey" line - all blues, beiges and browns with travel-themed extras.

while i haven't yet started my "journey" yet, i was very excited to visit authentique's facebook page and website today. it seems everyone is buzzing about them, and since my design project this month is all about them, i thought i'd buzz a little for them too.

stay tuned to see what i make this month. i'll be sure to post everywhere!

gypsy on the go

the blog is now optimized for mobile phones! thanks to technology i barely understand, by words of wisdom and fantastic creations can now appear on cell phones and iPads around the world in a nice little layout.