Hope you have a wonderful day!!
The first three should have posted yesterday but it ended up as a draft instead of a schedule.
Sorry about that!
Enjoy....
Happy Easter!
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Friday, March 29, 2013
Last Minute Easter Cards!
I love holidays and there just never seems to be enough time to make all that I want so I thought I'd share a couple last minute Easter Cards with you...
All stamps are Just For Fun Rubber Stamps.
Both images were colored using Spectrum Noir Markers.
I'm so excited...my Uncle Dan is coming in from Pennsylvania today for the weekend!
We don't get to see him often but it's always so much fun when we do.
This visit will make it an extra special Easter weekend.
Hope you all have a wonderful Easter holiday too!
Remember ~ tomorrow and Sunday I'll have a selection of vintage Easter postcards to share :)
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Gelatos - more on blending & layers
Today I wanted to share a bit more about blending & layering using Faber-Castell's Gelatos.
I figured since it's officially Spring even though it doesn't feel or look like it in some regions it would be fun to make a little canvas with hopes that it might bring about some nice weather. A girl can dream can't she ???
Spring Dreams
The first thing I did was some really basic shapes and scribbled in some colors. You'll notice how in various areas I used multiple colors of Gelatos (flowers, stems, sky) - when I begin blending with my watercolor brush these areas will create a nice depth to the image.
When I blend my gelatos together I like to start with the lighter colors and work towards the darker shades. For example I started at the tops of the flowers with the light pink and worked my way towards the red.
I did the same thing with the stems and worked from the lighter shade of green to the darker. You'll notice how creamy and nice the colors spread around.
Something to keep in mind when blending, the more water you use the more diluted and transparent your colors will be. For more intense creamy opaque colors you'll want to use less water.
For example, I used much more water to blend the sky area than I did the flowers or stems. This excess water allowed me to play with texture a bit by pouncing a wadded up plastic bag into the water/gelato mixture. As you can see it leaves an amazing pattern in the medium.
After the gelatos dried, which was very quick btw, I went back over the canvas and added additional details by simply drawing right over top the blended gelatos. What is really amazing about these Gelatos is their ability to layer without any issues you might have with other mediums. You'll see how the white covers up the red of the tulips! Amazing as red is one of the hardest colors to cover up. I like to use the white Gelatos to had highlights to some areas and make them pop off the canvas.
Next I wanted to share another amazing quality of the Gelatos...you can stamp right over the top of the dried Gelatos and get a superb impression! I used a variety of background stamps here (from Just For Fun Rubber Stamps) paired with Archival Inks to show you just how easy it is to stamp over these fun little color sticks!
You can't really see it all that well but in the upper left hand corner I used a piece of punchenella as a stencil. I rubbed some of the Gelatos over the stencil with my finger to make a thicker layer. I then I stamped the "Dream" sentiment into that layer of Gelatos and restamped the sentiment over and over without reinking. The stamp picked up some of the Gelatos each time I made an impression and carried a bit of it to the next stamping. It turned out to be really quite a cool effect.
I came back and added a few collage butterfly images (from Altered Pages) and a little butterfly fairy to finish off the Spring canvas.
Would you like this canvas to brighten your walls?
Simply post a comment about your favorite part of Spring.
I'll select a winner sometime next week!
Good Luck Friends!
I'll have more Gelato fun to share with you next week along with photos from the ATC & Charm swap.
Tomorrow I've got a few last minute Easter cards and then on Saturday & Sunday I have several very old Easter Postcards to share as well.
Hope to see you then but if you can't make it
please have a safe and happy Easter!
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Bookshelves Circle "Globe" Book
Welcome to the
Bookshelves Blog Hop!
I'm happy to be able to share my "Globe" (circle) mini album/book with you.
This book was constructed almost exclusively with materials from the Club Scrap March 2013 Bookshelves Kit. The only extra bits I added were a length of brown ribbon for the closure, a brown envelope pocket and a couple library type cards to tuck inside the library pockets included in the kit.
For complete instructions on how to assemble this book please see -
Enjoy....
For more fun projects using this awesome kit be sure to check out the rest of the
Club Scrap Hoppers....
Club Scrap Hoppers....
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(You Are Here!)
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Thanks so much for stopping by!!! |
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Circle Book - Part II
So, yesterday we talked about how to make your template for the circle book....today I wanted to talk about assembling the book and share a few sneak peek photos of my Club Scrap Bookshelves book.
After you make you're template you can easily trace out as many pages as you want your circle book to have. Four pages will create a complete circle when the book is fully opened ~ I chose to add an extra because I like odd numbers so my book has 5 fold outs.
I used each of the colors shown plus an extra of the brown pages.
Once you have all of your pages cut out, you can either embellish the pages themselves or use the second set of templates I shared yesterday to cut out mats for each section of your page. I decided to use mats for all of my pages because I wanted to incorporate the various pattern papers from the kit.
Now you could just use the fold out pages from above but I wanted to add a bit more room and substance to my book so I cut 4 additional half circle pages. To cut these extra pages I used the original template and simply folded up the extra flaps, traced the half circle onto my cardstock and trimmed the new pages out.
After I had all of my pages cut I inked all of the edges with brown ink and my Ink Blending Tool. Of course this is totally optional but I think it lent a get vintage feel to the finished book. It's WAY easier to do it now than after the book has been assembled.
Decorate the pages as desired. This is a super book to add pockets to but I have to admit that in my zeal to assemble the book I totally spaced on my pocket pages.
NOTE: when decorating the pages don't decorate the front and back covers at this time. That will come later.
Once your pages are decorated as desired, it's time to assemble the fold out pages. You will need to test fit the flap to make sure the inner corner has been trimmed correctly to allow the center fold in the floor of the page to close properly. You may need to cut a steeper angle to all the page to fully close without binding. Once you have tested for fit & closure, a bit of glue on the flap will do the trick.
To bind the book together you're simply going to apply glue to the back of your first page, align and layer on page 2, apply glue to the back of the second page, align & place page 3 on the pile and continue until all of the pages have been added. Depending on how many pages you are using your pile could be pretty thick.
It's time to add the ribbon closure. I simply applied a couple lines of ATG tape to the front cover and positioned the ribbon along the bottom third of the book at it's widest point. Once the ribbon on the front was secure I flipped the book over and added more tape on the back cover so it aligned with the position of the ribbon on the front cover.
At this time to spiff up the spine area of the book I also added two additional pieces of ribbon ~ one to the center of the book spine and one near the top. These are purely for decoration so short lengths of ribbon are just fine.
Now I covered both the front and back of the book with a decorated mat.
As promised, here is a sneak peek....
The front of the book ~
The back cover & spine area.... this is a good photo of the ribbon closure & decorative ribbon bits....
After you make you're template you can easily trace out as many pages as you want your circle book to have. Four pages will create a complete circle when the book is fully opened ~ I chose to add an extra because I like odd numbers so my book has 5 fold outs.
I used each of the colors shown plus an extra of the brown pages.
Once you have all of your pages cut out, you can either embellish the pages themselves or use the second set of templates I shared yesterday to cut out mats for each section of your page. I decided to use mats for all of my pages because I wanted to incorporate the various pattern papers from the kit.
Now you could just use the fold out pages from above but I wanted to add a bit more room and substance to my book so I cut 4 additional half circle pages. To cut these extra pages I used the original template and simply folded up the extra flaps, traced the half circle onto my cardstock and trimmed the new pages out.
After I had all of my pages cut I inked all of the edges with brown ink and my Ink Blending Tool. Of course this is totally optional but I think it lent a get vintage feel to the finished book. It's WAY easier to do it now than after the book has been assembled.
Decorate the pages as desired. This is a super book to add pockets to but I have to admit that in my zeal to assemble the book I totally spaced on my pocket pages.
NOTE: when decorating the pages don't decorate the front and back covers at this time. That will come later.
Once your pages are decorated as desired, it's time to assemble the fold out pages. You will need to test fit the flap to make sure the inner corner has been trimmed correctly to allow the center fold in the floor of the page to close properly. You may need to cut a steeper angle to all the page to fully close without binding. Once you have tested for fit & closure, a bit of glue on the flap will do the trick.
To bind the book together you're simply going to apply glue to the back of your first page, align and layer on page 2, apply glue to the back of the second page, align & place page 3 on the pile and continue until all of the pages have been added. Depending on how many pages you are using your pile could be pretty thick.
It's time to add the ribbon closure. I simply applied a couple lines of ATG tape to the front cover and positioned the ribbon along the bottom third of the book at it's widest point. Once the ribbon on the front was secure I flipped the book over and added more tape on the back cover so it aligned with the position of the ribbon on the front cover.
At this time to spiff up the spine area of the book I also added two additional pieces of ribbon ~ one to the center of the book spine and one near the top. These are purely for decoration so short lengths of ribbon are just fine.
Now I covered both the front and back of the book with a decorated mat.
As promised, here is a sneak peek....
The front of the book ~
The back cover & spine area.... this is a good photo of the ribbon closure & decorative ribbon bits....
Tomorrow I'll share the inside pages of my book!
Be sure to check back then :)
You'll also have the chance to check out several other amazing creations using the Club Scrap Bookshelves Kit!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Circle Book Template Ideas
When I got the March Club Scrap Kit - Bookshelves, I knew I wanted to make something different for this month's CS Blog Hop rather than just the usual cards. Don't get me wrong, I love making cards ~ they are one of my favorite things to make. These papers and designs are just so beautiful and well, I LOVE books so I figured what better to make with a "book" related kit than a book. Now it couldn't just be an ordinary book/album so I thought and thought and decided since one of the main images for the Bookshelves kit is a globe why not make a circle book!
Origami Circle Book Page Instructions:
Back in my scrapbook days I made many mini albums and a circle book was one of them ~ this isn't a book with round pages, it's actually a book made from circles that once the album has been opened the pages form a circle as well. That book was an origami type book which used a circle folded a particular way to make the pop out pages.
In order to create this circle book you will need to first cut several circles out of cardstock. I used this tin lid for my circle template. It's approx. 10" across which is about the largest circle item I could find in my home.
Once you have cut the circle out of the sheet of cardstock you will need to fold it in half.
Then rotate the circle and fold it in half a second time.
Now you need to rotate the paper just a bit ~ fold the circle in half mid-way between the quarter folds. You will now have a circle with the following creases:
In order to form the pages bend and crease the 4 smaller panels towards the center so they meet in the middle....
Here's what it looks like when closed....
Open the folded page back up ~ by adding a dab of glue to the upper small folds so you are left with a quarter of a circle. This is how a page in the Origami Circle Book comes out. In order to make an entire album using this pattern you would need to cut and fold at least 4 of these pages.
Please note there are several things to keep in mind when constructing this book/album:
The pages should be decorated prior to gluing the center top fold together.
When decorating each page do not cover the creases with cardstock, embellishments or other decorations.
Assembled pages should be closed while stacking and gluing the pages together.
Now, that book is perfectly fine and I've made several in the past but I have two issues with this type of album.
First, it wastes so much paper....unless you have a 12" circle object laying around it's hard not to waste paper. I know I could use the scraps for smaller projects but if you're like me you already have a heaping scrap basket and don't need to add any more to it.
The second thing that really bugs me about this book is the hang-y down part in the center. I find it so distracting!!! I know it doesn't bother everyone but for some reason it drives me nuts so I really wanted to make a book without that darn dangly part!
SO - I decided to try and find a solution to both of those problems...
Improved Circle Book Page Instructions:
First things first ~ the issue of the circle size. I was thinking about other projects that use a full sheet of cardstock and how most of those are created by first folding the paper into quarters. Well, I already knew I needed quarter folds in my cardstock so this was a great start.
So I folded a 12" piece of cardstock into quarters then using the same tin lid I positioned it so that it was as close to the corners as possible to use up as much of the paper and create the largest circle I could.
I cut the circle from the cardstock and check out how little waste there is! Just 4 tiny corner pieces is all that was left from this larger circle page.
Next time to get rid of the hang-y down part! I knew from making fold out cards and foldable 3-D Gothic Arches that part of the circle had to go. Below is a cut away and fold lines which were added to the existing folds from when the circle was created.
And here is what a single unassembled page should look like:
And here is what each page looks like side by side:
Fully opened ~
And partially closed ~ I don't know about you but I LOVE how the new book page looks compared to the origami style page plus the larger size is more opportunity to embellish!
Now that we have the page style figured out I thought it would be cool to make templates for the decorating part as well. I created these templates the same way I did to make the original but substituted an 11" piece of cardstock instead of a 12".
After I had the circle cut out I simply snipped apart the 1/4 & 1/8 circle pieces. 1 can be used for both the left and right side of the upper portion of the page and 2 & 3 will be used on the smaller portions.
Origami Circle Book Page Instructions:
Back in my scrapbook days I made many mini albums and a circle book was one of them ~ this isn't a book with round pages, it's actually a book made from circles that once the album has been opened the pages form a circle as well. That book was an origami type book which used a circle folded a particular way to make the pop out pages.
In order to create this circle book you will need to first cut several circles out of cardstock. I used this tin lid for my circle template. It's approx. 10" across which is about the largest circle item I could find in my home.
Once you have cut the circle out of the sheet of cardstock you will need to fold it in half.
Then rotate the circle and fold it in half a second time.
Now you need to rotate the paper just a bit ~ fold the circle in half mid-way between the quarter folds. You will now have a circle with the following creases:
In order to form the pages bend and crease the 4 smaller panels towards the center so they meet in the middle....
Here's what it looks like when closed....
Open the folded page back up ~ by adding a dab of glue to the upper small folds so you are left with a quarter of a circle. This is how a page in the Origami Circle Book comes out. In order to make an entire album using this pattern you would need to cut and fold at least 4 of these pages.
Please note there are several things to keep in mind when constructing this book/album:
The pages should be decorated prior to gluing the center top fold together.
When decorating each page do not cover the creases with cardstock, embellishments or other decorations.
Assembled pages should be closed while stacking and gluing the pages together.
Now, that book is perfectly fine and I've made several in the past but I have two issues with this type of album.
First, it wastes so much paper....unless you have a 12" circle object laying around it's hard not to waste paper. I know I could use the scraps for smaller projects but if you're like me you already have a heaping scrap basket and don't need to add any more to it.
The second thing that really bugs me about this book is the hang-y down part in the center. I find it so distracting!!! I know it doesn't bother everyone but for some reason it drives me nuts so I really wanted to make a book without that darn dangly part!
SO - I decided to try and find a solution to both of those problems...
Improved Circle Book Page Instructions:
First things first ~ the issue of the circle size. I was thinking about other projects that use a full sheet of cardstock and how most of those are created by first folding the paper into quarters. Well, I already knew I needed quarter folds in my cardstock so this was a great start.
So I folded a 12" piece of cardstock into quarters then using the same tin lid I positioned it so that it was as close to the corners as possible to use up as much of the paper and create the largest circle I could.
I cut the circle from the cardstock and check out how little waste there is! Just 4 tiny corner pieces is all that was left from this larger circle page.
Next time to get rid of the hang-y down part! I knew from making fold out cards and foldable 3-D Gothic Arches that part of the circle had to go. Below is a cut away and fold lines which were added to the existing folds from when the circle was created.
And here is what a single unassembled page should look like:
And here is what each page looks like side by side:
Fully opened ~
And partially closed ~ I don't know about you but I LOVE how the new book page looks compared to the origami style page plus the larger size is more opportunity to embellish!
Now that we have the page style figured out I thought it would be cool to make templates for the decorating part as well. I created these templates the same way I did to make the original but substituted an 11" piece of cardstock instead of a 12".
After I had the circle cut out I simply snipped apart the 1/4 & 1/8 circle pieces. 1 can be used for both the left and right side of the upper portion of the page and 2 & 3 will be used on the smaller portions.
Now that we have the templates made you're all set to begin on the book it's self!
I'll be back tomorrow with more on the circle book and some assembly tips.