I am seeking. I am striving. I am in it with all my heart...

Here is a layout I designed. I challenged myself to only use scraps! So there is some seriously old paper in this layout, but I love it! It was greate to push myself and see what I can come up. I stuck to my sketch because it was the only thing I was inspired by! I had to make everything else work!

Create Well: Dig out those old papers and make them new again!

It Starts Tomorrow!

The blog hop starts tomorrow! One Bright Spot will be one of the sponsors featured! You won't want to miss it. The best thing is that you can do it from the comfort of home and in jammies if you want!

Create Well: Use the Internet to be inspired! It won't judge you for having a bad hair day.

Creation Inspiration

This inspiration came from Life Needs a Few More Cupcakes and Sunshine. {Just the blog name makes you want to stick around for a while} I love this re-purposing idea! It makes me want to dig in the recycle bin and pull any little containers out.

Becca sent this link for an idea for Teacher's Appreciation. What a great idea!

Create Well: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle! This gift is the perfect size for your scraps of paper and unused embellishments.

Creation Inspiration

Today's Creation Inspiration comes from my dear Craft Warehouse! Have you ever walked into a fabric store and just got inspired artistically? I can't help it! Yesterday, I had to walk in the fabric department of Craft Warehouse and run my hands across the bolts of fabric. These colors caught my eye among many others.

I love using them in my scrapbook layouts or mixed media art. I am also addicted to creating dolls for all my female relatives this year! These colors are so popular right now that no matter what season they will be perfect!

Create Well: Step out and look in places unfamiliar to be inspired!

Designer Blogs

I was {here} today and found Designer Blogs. What talent! I then noticed that on Erin's home page she said she was selling her old blog design for the first person that contacted her. When I got her email back, I thought I had won a contest or something! I can't believe that I was able to get this beautiful blog design installed TODAY! Thank you Erin! Let me know what you think!

It's Official!

It's official! I have been chosen to be on the Craft Warehouse Design Team! I am so excited about this new adventure that I will be on. You can take a look at my bio here.

So, as readers of my blog you will have a chance to see the process of some of the projects that I do for Craft Warehouse. I am looking forward to our first package of product in the mail sometime next week! I will keep you posted!

Fly Free

I love using chipboard items as a pattern for another piece before I begin to paint, distress, and embellish it. It stretches the dollar, don't you think? This is Becca's little birdie design.

Create Well: Use left over rub ons to add a "scratch" look on your page.

Sunshine of My Life

Ok... Donna Downey inspires me. She truly does! Here is a piece done from one of her tutorials. {Sigh! I could do it again and again!}

Create Well: Go to used book stores or garage sales to find old dictionaries to add to your layouts. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

Garden Journal

Mom's birthday was this week and of course I had to create a garden journal, since all I have been thinking of has been spring!
Here is my original sketch that I drew. I have been enjoying the new sketch book Becca and Josh bought me. I usually do these right before I close my eyes for the night.

These flowers were made by yours truly! You can find them here.

These are Becca's paperclips! I loved them so much that I clipped them throughout the book. You can find them here.

These tags make great places to journal that discovery in the garden.

I then added these tags that Becca designed just for me through out the book so that Mom can journal through the year.

Book: Target

Notebook paper: Target

Transparency: Creative Imaginations

Paper: Cosmo Cricket, Making Memories, Bo Bunny

Scallop Border: Bazzill

Cardstock: Bazzill

Ink: Color Box

Rub Ons: Making Memories, 7gypsies

Tags, Paperclips, and Flower: One Bright Spot

Create Well: Save time by purchasing a pre-made notebook or journal and adding your own embellishments to it!

Cherish

I created this wall hanging for CWH design call and since the results have been made, I thought I would share it with my family and friends! I love it so much but have no idea where it is going to hang in my home! Any suggestions? It was so much fun to make! The best part about my recent pieces is that they created no stress at all! I just had fun making them and if CWH liked them then all the better! If not, no biggy, cause I think they are some of my best work yet. I just had a blast creating them - which is all that matters!

Items used: Rubons, flower punch, large grommets, muslin, gesso, paint, paper, Bazzill scallop border, eyelets, and ribbon

Create Well: Try using items in your home that you would normally throw away. Add gesso to anything and you have an instant canvas!

Enjoy Life

This layout was also created for CWH design call. I was so pleased with this layout that I skipped to bed when I was finished (some time after 11pm).

I was so excited to use my acrylic for this layout. I had never seen anyone cut it up and use it in the sewing machine before. I thought the holes in the acrylic would give it a great pattern. I used rubons even over top of the acrylic to give it a bit more dimension. I handmade most of the flowers on the page. For one of them I even got out the dry embossing templates that have been collecting dust for a while! It's nice to bring back the old, isn't it?!

Create Well: Spend an hour in your scrapbooking supplies and dig out those old embellishments or techniques that you have forgotten about. Make them new again!

Just Read

I had a lot of fun doing this layout! This was created for my design call application for Craft Warehouse! Now that I know the results I can post my layouts. What do you think? It is just fun!

These flowers were created by hand with muslin, gesso, white paint, P&P pages, thread, fabric from CWH, paper flowers, and a rhinestone! Took a while to create but it was so worth it in the end!

The scalloped border was cut by hand!

Create Well: Try creating your embellishments by hand. It saves money and keeps the trash can from collecting more scraps!

I Couldn't Help Myself!

OK, so I have to share with you what I made Becca for Easter! It made me laugh the whole time making it! The image is vintage and I placed Becca's picture on top. I then continued the collage by adding magazine cut outs of a stamp, acrylic block, pen, and flowers. I glued a cutout of ribbon falling behind her... her expression is kind of like, "Oops! I dropped that!" The quote at the bottom I wrote for her, "I eat, sleep, and dream card making, stamping, and ink. I think it is healthy... it's when I don't that I should be worried."

This project was just for fun! It doesn't hurt to use a bit of what you already have to "go at it!" (Supplies used: vintage image, vintage dictionary, stamps, ink, acrylic paint, watercolor, magazines, rub-ons, rhinestones, gesso, muslin, and silk flowers.