I finally got the Christmas Tree done today!!! My 9 foot Martha Stewart Tree...

Happy Holidays Everyone!!

Here is wishing everyone a Wonderful, Happy, and Safe Holiday!!!

It was a warm sunny day today in the Sunshine state...But it has started to snow on my blog...Oh how I miss the touch of snowflakes on my tongue...Makes me think of "snow days" from my elementary school days....NO SCHOOL!!!!!! Yay!!!! Good memories!!

My good friend Angelica has a wonderful Etsy Shop called "Angelica's Little Scrap Shop". You know her from her beautiful LO's at SB.com.(go check out her beautiful gallery) She has the most beautiful embellishment kits at her shop and she was soooo kind enough to send me a fantastic kit called "Jingle Bells Christmas Embellishment Kit for Scrapbooking" My oh my..It is filled with gorgeous golden shiny sparking embellies. I wanted to fit every single piece in this LO, but I wanted to save some for another LO, so I still have more left that I haven't even used here. From the gold lame ribbon to the beautiful silk flowers, the glistening branches and the fantastic snowflakes, it is all so fitting for an elegant Holiday LO. Go see what she has in the shop. I love everything!! http://www.etsy.com/shop/angelicafranssen. The photo is my nephew years ago, sleeping and waiting for Jolly Old St.Nick to visit. I have used this photo before, but it is one of my faves....Thank you Angelica for the awesome kit!!!I think I may add some more to this LO with what I have left!! Love it!!

SWIRLYDOOS "MY FAVORITE THINGS" kit

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!! Here are 6 of my LO's from Swirlydoos December kit "My Favorite Things". I have so much more to get out of the kit. I have one that I havent uploaded anywhere because I am so unhappy with it. I am trying to figure out how to save it. You cant get a bad LO with these papers, I am just so critical of myself. I also did 2 cards that I havent uploaded either. I will work on them tomorrow. I found myself reaching for old Christmas photo's of my kiddies when they were younger. Just feeling sentimental I guess. They have always been close even though they are 5 years apart. There was only one year that they fell apart from each other, and that was because Nick (my son) got married and my daughter found that her big brother was gone...He settled into his new life and before you knew it. they were back to their old selves again... Today, Nick came over to try and install Windows 7 onto my Dell, and Gabbie whisked him away to lunch...they went to Chili's...Ya think they would have bought something back for me!!!! LOL... Not even left overs. It is just nice to see these 2 love each other. Makes my momma heart smile!!

We are up to week 5 in making another page for our Mini Album in Monday Morning Mini Madness over at Swirlydoos. This weeks tutorial is on making a Water Fall page..Come join the fun and get an album done while learning new techniques!!

Can I tell you how much I loved working with this last SWIRLYDOOS kit...Antique Linen for November. The papers are just divine!! I always think Krissy out does herself every month, and out comes another masterpiece kit. This is one of my faves. I used 2 pieces of the paper and the rest of my scraps from the kit. I quilled, Glimmer Misted, punched, wrote, used texture rub ons, and added the Paper bag flower from my tutorial at Swirlydoos. Everything on this LO is from the kit except for the brad, that was from a previous kit. The Photo was edited in Photoshop CS4, it is my DD when she was about 9 months old. I added fairy wings and a little fairy sparkle magic at her fingertips. TFL...

Another Swirlydoos Design Team LO I did with the gorgeous Antique Linen November main kit. The paper, flowers, lace, stamps. The only thing from my stash is the Journey die cut. I made my own word paper using the cream cardstock from the kits add on card stock, opened up Microsoft word, using the French Script font, started writing sweet words of love, chose a font color the same color brown as in the blue TPC paper and printed it on the card stock. It worked out wonderfully, I also used a little Glimmer Mist in blue to mask a soft flourish then inked the whole LO. I also made my own tiny letter stickers and inked all around before placing them on the lO. I used my Cricut Expression for the first time creating the brown flourishes at the bottom of the LO...The smaller leaves are Sizzix cut with the beautiful leaf green card stock from the add on. Just a side note, I absolutely adore seeing what everyone is creating with Swirlydoos kits...Beautiful work all around!! TFL... The photo is from a wedding I shot a few months ago.

Paper Bag Flower Tutorial

There is a new tutorial over at SWIRLYDOOS...It is for a flower made from paper bags. Though you could use mulberry paper, coffee filters, or just your favorite paper. The paper that Krissy wraps our scrapbook kit in before she places it in the packaging box is a wonderful slightly shiny thinner paper bag. Not rough like a grocery bag. I love it and have even made great ruffles with this paper. Glimmer Mist works so well on coffee filters. The colors are amazing!! So go check out the Paper Bag Flowers, and try your own. Hit me up if you do, I would love to see what you came up with!!

~~~Supplies~~~
1. Any die that will give you a flower petal, or you can hand cut your own. For the illustrated flowers I used the small petal and flower center from the Sizzix Poinsettia Die.
2. Glue
3. Glimmer Mist
4. Something for the center of the flower, brads, jewel centers, small flowers, small cardstock
roses, rhinestones, or buttons.
5. Coffee filters, paper bags, (or any double sided paper. mulberry paper and cardstock may
be used)

Glimmer mist the whole coffee filter or paper bag and die cut or hand cut the petals. For one flower you will need 15 petals.
While the petals are still very slightly damp, twist the petals, then slightly unravel. You should have ripples in the petal. If the paper is still to wet, you will not get the wrinkle ripples, if the paper is bone dry, the paper may rip. Very very slightly damp works best. Then just grabbing the top tip of the petal, twist it so that the petals has a slight overlay towards the tip.
For the bottom layer, glue 8 petals together as shown with the folded tip on the outside of the flower. The next layer will have the remaining 7 petals. I used 2 smaller flowers for the middle. You can use a small flower punch like the Retro or Daisy punch for the middle, but this is just optional to add more dimension. If you will be using an alternative center, the smaller flowers are not necessary Now glue the 7 petal flower on top of the 8 petal flower. You can now twist the tips a little further to your liking. You can further distress it by inking the edges of the petals, by lightly brushing over the whole flower.
To finish your flower, you can use a variety of embellishments for the center. In Illustration 4, I used a small flower and a brad, in 5, I used a small coffee filter rose using Manda's cardstock tutorial over at Swirlydoos. In the last photo I used the pretty pearl metal centers from the Antique Linen Kit.




Note: Leaves can be done with the same petal you use for the flowers. Crease in the middle and ink the crease, Ink the sides and curl under and crunch slightly to get a real leaf look as in this illustration.

Antique Linen

These pages were created with Swirlydoos November kit Antique Linen. It is one of the most beautiful kits yet!! But I think that about every kit from Swirlydoos. I have been busy with a couple of tutorials, so I only managed to get 4 LO's done for reveal day, but will squeeze out a few more. Tomorrow is Monday Morning Mini Madness!!! Another page creation will be posted in the morning!! Break out those alcohol inks!!! We're gonna get a little crazy!!

Lets Start a Mini...

Head on over to SWIRLYDOOS. I will be doing a weekly series on Mondays on How to make a Mini Album step by step. Head on over to the Tips, Tricks & Techniques page for Part 1 which started today. The Series will be titled "Monday Morning Mini Madness"..Stay tuned for more info. Todays tutorial is on preparing the cover, back and pages. Future sessions will be on embellishing your cover and the different pages with cool techniques and tutorials and end with putting it all together, So come and join us for Monday Mini Madness. If you have always wanted to try a mini, this will take you step by step...

AUTUMN SPLENDOR

Here are the first 5 layouts from my design team work for Swirlydoos. I have 2 more in the works on my project desk right now, just no time to finish them up for reveal day today. The kit is just awesome as always!! I didnt think I could find any fall related photo's, but I dug deep into my photo albums and found a few. And Photoshop helped me enhance some of the photos as well.

SWIRLYDOOS AUTUMN SPLENDOR KIT

Swirlydoos is proud to offer you our crisp October collection - Autumn Splendor !!


Fall is definitely in the air here at Swirlydoos! With the breeze turning brisk and the leaves turning colors our minds are set on the beautiful jewel tones that blanket the landscape this time of year. Born of our love for these beautifully, rich colors came our warm and cozy October kit. Our "Autumn Splendor" collection comes complete with an incredible custom sketch by the very talented Beggahuna, which you can use to enter our monthly sketch challenge! This carefully prepared scrapbook collection boasts a variety of brand new products from SEI, My Little Yellow Bicycle, Petaloo, Prima and the list goes on! As a special treat we have teamed up with Unique Pages to create a beautiful custom cut chipboard circle delicately endowed with Fall Maple Leaves and we just know it will add such a special touch to your Fall project! We are proud to offer you a coordinating cardstock add on, a pattern paper add on, our 'Signature' Flower add-on kit, and a 7-Gypsies exclusive add-on kit that will blow your mind! 7-Gypsies is sponsoring our manufacturer contest this month, see details over at SWIRLYDOOS on how to win one of two FABULOUS 7-Gypsies prizes! We sincerely hope you'll enjoy this beautiful collection that we have prepared for you!

We are headed towards the end of another beautiful SWIRLYDOOS month..The last of summer is trailing behind us....Fall is on the way. I end Bejeweled with a LO that oozes Summer sunshine...This is my daughter at 8 years old, so proud that she grew her own Sunflower garden, and so she poses beside her prized flowers...Wish I had gotten more pictures...But I do love this one. So while the October Swirlydoos kit Autumn Splendor waits on my scrapbook table, begging to be opened and created with, I leave you with Gabbies Flowers...The last of Septembers "Bejeweled"...

These Layouts are the new addition to the ever growing stash of LO's done with SWIRLYDOOS September kits from "BEJEWELED". The Prima papers come from the INDEED and PARADISE CITY line... I absolutely had so much fun creating with this kit.. It is just jammed packed with beautiful goodness...

Working on my Fantasy Grunge photos in Photoshop. I just loved this photo!! Wyatt is a doll baby!!

Swirlydoos September Kit

The SWIRLYDOOS September kit is out...And it is Beautiful to say the least. The Prima papers in the kit are from the brand new Indeed line. They are magical in design and the colors are just dreamy. There are also papers from Graphic 45 and lots of beautiful embellishments. Dont forget the add ons...They rock!! Go check it out here !!

Swirlydoo "Passion" August kit

The luscious August kit "Passion" is now out at SWIRLYDOOS... I fell in love with the purples as they beckoned me to scrap my wedding photos. My bridesmaids all wore lavender to purple...Wow. that was almost 25 years ago. I had to get working on the LO's for Passion as I was meeting Krissy, Kathi and Kathy at CHA...ORLANDO!!!! It was so much fun and the 4 of us were in scrapbook heaven...But I will save that story for another post...Thanks for taking a peek at my Passion work!!

Ok. So sometimes we are inspired by a scrappers LO.. As for this LO, I was totally inspired by my SWIRLYDOOS design Team mate, Robin (Robinzberdz)...Krissy (Rodeeogrl) sent us these awesome envelopes that some Prima paper came in...Otherwise they would have been thrown out. It is packaging!! But Oh NO, Krissy knew they would be added to some beautiful projects some day...This was it for me. The very talented Beth Root is Guest Designer at Swirlydoos this month and has a challenge for subscribers to use all your scraps from past Swirlydoos kits. I almost always use the kits to the last drop, but did have a few leftovers. So here is the result...So Thank You Robin, Krissy and Beth, such great inspiration...By the way, this is my dear daughter in law Ashley...She loves her Bling!!!!

SUMMER SORBET

Here are the first few photos of the pages I did for SWIRLYDOOS July kit Summer Sorbet. The papers and embellies are so summery and beautiful!! The flower add on kit is fantastically beautiful and the card stock add on has the yummiest colors!! Go to Swirlydoos for the butterfly tutorial and then after you register at Swirlydoos, you can PM me with your email and I will send you a few files for the butterflies. All you have to do is print them out and embellish!!

YOU ARE MY MUSE

This LO was done with the Swirlydoos Main June kit TIMELESS. I added the butterfly, ribbon,jewelry finds, and rose from my own stash. The design was influenced by Gabriellep, and I love her Iron Maiden butterflies dearly so I tried my hand at making my own using her design. Although I purchased her transparency butterflies and they are so beautiful!! I made the rose from coffee filters and Glimmer mist, You can visit Swirlydoos for the my tutorial. TFL...All papers are My Minds Eye from their Bella Bella collection