Happy Weekend!

Wow, I think today was the first really nice day this year here and I totally took advantage of it.  I guess I thought we wouldn't get another so outside it was!  I got my outside furniture restained, my deck cleaned and organized, and my truck all nice and shiny! I am happy to report though that this weather is suppose to continue ALL WEEKEND! But here in the Maritimes, wait five minutes and it could be something else...I am just hoping that isn't the case this weekend.  Here in the Annapolis Valley the Apple Blossom Festival has been kicked into high gear today.  This weather is great news for those who have put countless hours into organizing and for those that take in the festivities.  I am in the percentage that enjoys staying as far away from the crowds as possible but truly enjoys the beauty of what this valley has and thrives on.

The farmers market has begun again for another year and there is nothing like knowing where your food actually came from and the people that produced it.  I love seeing our regular customers back each year because they have become friends, not just simply customers.  In saying that, the flour portion of this blog is going to flourish because I have to admit, this winter was a nice break from baking but I did miss it!  I can't wait to get back into the kitchen to play as well as in my craft room.

There is a few more hours to get your entries in for Inspiration Emporium's monthly challenge of Don't Quote Me.  Share with us on their blog your creation using your favorite quote and you could win 50 Emporium dollars towards your next order at IE.  I have combined the quote challenge with Tim's monthly tag challenge this month because I have vowed to complete every one of them.  (A little challenge I have going with a friend!)  There are so many quotes out there that hit a cord with me but there is one I keep coming back to and it is what I find myself repeating and reminding myself of often. It is simple yet so meaningful with everything going on in our busy lives.  We just need to slow down sometimes, breath, and take it all in!

 

I love the idea of using the Remnant Rubs randomly over the tag which acts as a resist to any ink or stain.  I also couldn't wait to use this stamp set (Time Travelers) and love how he turned out.

A few of the details:

So don't forget to get your creations uploaded both HERE and HERE for your chance to win. I hope you all have an amazing weekend and remember to enjoy the journey! h

A few of my favorite things

I hope all of you had an amazing Mother's Day whether you were spending it with your mother, thinking of your mother or being thanked for being a mother or in a mother role.  I did so with my mom on Saturday and had a lovely afternoon! I am thankful every day that I have the mother I do, love you mom!

Have you ever found yourself buying that certain something that you will keep for that perfect place in a project just because it calls to you? Over the years I have done that and even though I try to use them, I have to admit I have a little stash of things that were just waiting for that perfect home.  When thinking of my next project I thought what better way then to have these pieces all together in a piece I call 'A few of my favorite things'.  I was given a shadowbox frame a while ago and was told, not sure what you can do with this but you might find something.  It has just been sitting there for a while and my thoughts kept going back to it knowing it was going to take some serious altering (I know you all have those pieces)!

So, this is how this whole project started...

After some black gesso, various distress paints, and distress embossing powders this frame looks a whole lot different. 

There, that's better!

For the next step, I wanted to decide on the frame orientation and just how I wanted to place my extra configuration boxes in it.  I didn't necessarily need to do this but I wanted to know so when I covered the individual boxes in the next step , I wouldn't have all the tissue wrap upside down or on its side. 

In the next couple of steps you just let things go and do with little thinking.  All of the configuration boxes are covered using Tim Holtz's ideology tissue wrap and Ranger's glue n' seal and painted with various distress paints.  I wanted my paint to be an accent to the tissue wrap and not just an all over colour so I just played with the paints, my water mister and waterbrush. Once these were dry the fun of assembling came next.  A little trick to making this step a bit easier...take a photo of how you decided you wanted your boxes in the frame.  Once you are ready to attach your found treasures, have this on hand.  I attached everything in the boxes with multi medium and let set overnight before finally adding them to my shadowbox. 

 

Added dimension can be added by propping certain boxes up to various heights while leaving others flat to the frame.

 

Supplies: configuration boxes, shadowbox frame, black gesso, distress paints, distress embossing powders, glue n' seal, multi medium, foam brush, waterbrush, water mister, and found treasures. Remember if you are need of any of these supplies or others, stop on over to Inspiration Emporium and mention ink&flour to receive 10% off your purchases.

 

There you have it...a few of my favorite things.  I hope you are able to take some time and be creative this week.  Thank you to everyone for your sweet comments left on my last tag post and stopping by. h

Happy International Scrapbook Day!

I have to start out by saying I have missed blogging but sometimes life just gets interrupted!  Among other things my computer's hard drive went kaput so just getting that up and running again.  I think there is no better day to get back at things that International Scrapbooking day.  I truly hope everyone of you are getting your creative juices going today whether it is on your own or out with friends. 

This creative outlet has really made my life better.  I have seen some amazing places, made art and most importantly met some truly amazing and unforgettable people.  I have made some true and genuine friends for life while doing what I love to do and that I am forever grateful!!! We all have things happen in our lives that test our beliefs and sanity but knowing we have something we can lose myselves in and and have true soul friends that are just 'there' (whether they are next door or countries away) is everything! I am humbled by this thing we call scrapbooking! I have to say I probably can count on one hand how many scrapbook pages I have made in my life but I love to make art and love the process of making 'memory homes', be it mini albums or art pieces.  Each time I look at them it takes me back...

 So, today I wanted to share this tag and this sentiment with you...

I first want to apologize for the few pictures that were taken of the process because I guess I just got lost in the creating.

 

I started out by taping my tag and stencil to my craft mat and with my craft scraper applied white embossing paste to create an allover pattern.  I removed the stencil while the paste was still wet to be washed.  While the tag was still wet I pounced a piece of crumpled up paper towel over the paste which added a bit of texture and took away any sharp looking edges.  I did this step first so it could be set it aside to dry. When inked this process resembles that of using embossing folders.  This is a great way to get that look when you don't have just the right embossing folder.

I then used my Tattered Pinecone die cut and cut various colours of cordinations cardstock of the pinecone and brown cordinations for the foliage.  Leaving the excess cardstock, I sanded the pinecone piece to give it the distressed look I was going for and giving it some contrast.  Remember, always sand on something other than your craft mat so you do not destroy it. 

Here is where my process lacks pictures but what is better than pictures...videos! Tim Holtz has a great video showing just how we can use this tattered pinecone die to make dimensional pinecones as well as flowers.  Find it HERE along with many other great informative videos.

Next step, I selected just the perfect letters to attach to my tag.  These adhesive backed plastic letters from Tim Holtz and Ideology just scream alter me so I painted mine with distress paints.  I can't say enough how much I LOVE these paints! Before attaching them to my tag I added some colour to it with distess inks and ink blending tools once the paste was completely dry.

To pull it all together the roses and foliage were attached with glue and seal after being inked, ribbon dyed with distress stains and embellishments were added. As always, mention ink&flour when visiting Inspiration Emporium to get 10% off your purchase. 

So, THANK YOU! Thank you for being a part of this adventure and for visiting my little creative home here.It feels good to be back at it!  h