More burlap banners!

Just having fun with a bit more burlap and felt!  I wanted to try a black and white burlap banner, so thought it would make such a cool wedding banner -- just had to try it.  Then, I wanted to create a banner for my home with my favorite colors -- cranberry red and sea foam blue.  So much fun to make!

Supplies used:  wool felt, patterned and plain, tight weave burlap, SU spiral flower die, retired SU table setting die and Autumn accents die, SU vintage brads, and lots of hot glue!

Some much needed rain came last night, and the forest fire smoke has finally cleared a bit.  Perhaps my lungs can finally recover. :)  Probably all this burlap fuzz didn't help at all! Ha ha.

Happy Saturday! and hope this inspires you to get your crafty on! OR if it doesn't, come to one of my classes in October and make one with all MY stuff. :)

Grateful Banner

Happy Friday!

Every so often, ok, QUITE often, I get an "itch" to create something beautiful. :)  I have recently been made aware, of what a HUGE stash of patterned burlap and felt I have accumulated.  You see, I am just a wee bit addicted to making cute die cut flowers, etc. with it....  And, every time I see a new pattern at Joanne's that I hadn't gotten before, well.... you know how that turns out...

I decided to make a fall banner with some of it, just to see how it came out.  I'm planning to offer this as a class in October, so stay tuned for coming events! :)

I started by applying fusible interfacing to the back of the burlap before I die cut it -- to reduce fraying.  After die cutting the banners, I used a crop-a-dile to punch holes for the twine to go through.  Next, I ironed Wonder Under to the back of some Espresso colored felt -- and die cut the letters for the word, "Grateful".  Then, I fused the letters to the banner pieces -- using a hot iron -- and strung the banner pieces together on a length of hemp twine.  Finally, I added the rolled flowers -- some are burlap (treated with a mixture of ModgePodge and water to reduce fraying) and some are felt.  The roses are cut with the SU spiral flower die.  If you have never played with this die before, you simply MUST! It makes creating roses so EASY!  My die is so well loved, it looks like it's been through a war -- cutting all that stiff burlap, but it still works great.  I die cut the leaves using the SU retired autumn accents die, and the banners are cut using a retired banners die, however, you could easily hand cut the banner pieces and make them flagged ends or triangles.

I would love to hear what you think of it! :)

Stylus embossed "You've Got This"

One more post before I get on with my day. :)  Here is another card we made at my last Stampers' Hostess club class.  It features another lovely stamp set -- You've Got This.  I wanted to show how to use this stamp in a "non-watercolored" way.  This seemed to be the card everyone liked the most at that class, so I think it was a winner.
I started by cutting an oval out of velum cardstock, using the oval framelits.  I then used the same framelit and the next smaller one together, to cut an oval "frame" out of Pear Pizzaz card stock -- place your two oval framelits nested together on top of your card stock, and run it through the Big Shot at the same time -- it will create a nice "frame" to use however you like.
I then stamped the flower in Memento Black Tuxedo ink on the vellum oval.  Dry it with a heat gun, as it smears terribly if not dry.  Next, attach your Pear Pizzazz oval frame to the stamped vellum oval -- using Mono Multi glue.  Then, turn your oval over onto a paper piercing mat -- this gives you the cushion that you need to create this effect.  Next, use a stylus and rub it on the back of the flower image -- it stretches the velum and turns it white and makes the front side puff up -- such a cool affect.  You can even rub your stylus in a patterned way, to create a different look.  The reason you want to attach your oval frame to the vellum BEFORE you start using the stylus, is that it makes the vellum warp and it is really hard to attach your frame once it has warped.  Once you have achieved the stylus affect you want, use markers to color in the leaves and stem and flower center on the back side of the vellum -- I used Old Olive, Pear Pizzazz, and Crushed Curry markers.  The rest of the card is straight forward -- I embossed the black panel with an embossing folder, and attached it to a folded heavy weight whisper white card stock base.  YES! We now have  Whisper White thick card stock which is perfect for card bases. And I used the new Banner Tripple punch to make that flagged sentiment panel -- LOVE this punch!  It is a must have in my book.  Makes punching flagged ends so easy and so uniform!  If you haven't gotten this punch yet, it is well worth the price.

Ok!  This has got to be a record! Three posts in one day. :)

Happy Tuesday, Everyone! and pull out your vellum and stylus and re-create this beauty on your own!

Denim and burlap -- a dynamic duo!

A little while ago, Michaels had a beautiful display of denim and burlap combos.  I wouldn't have thought of putting those two together, but I so loved how it looked, that I decided to make a wreath like that.  I kind of love how it turned out.  I used various buttons and beads for the centers of the flowers.  The SU burlap ribbon makes the BEST rolled ribbon flowers -- just the right thickness and texture.  I used a roll of denim ribbon I found, to make the rolled denim flowers.  Then, the SU spiral flower die  was used to die cut the rest of the flowers featured on the wreath.  I used treated burlap (paint your burlap with a mixture of 4 to 1 -- water to Modge Podge and let dry -- keeps your burlap flowers from fraying so badly) for some of them, and various denim varieties for the rest.  I used the SU retired Autumn Accents die to cut the various leaves.  The wreath is a basic 18" straw wreath that I wrapped with some wide burlap ribbon.  Very fun project to make, and a whole different look than what I've created before.

So, dig out your old denim scraps and make something lovely with them! :)

Awesomely Artistic is beautiful!

Happy Tuesday, Everyone!

I usually would be working today, but my boss is on vacation, so I am, too! :)

This card is one we did at my last Stampers' Hostess club.  It features a new stamp set -- Awesomely Artistic.  In my opinion, this is one of the prettiest sets in this year's catalog.  The images work so well together, and there are so many techniques you can do with this set to achieve beautiful results.  This card just features basic stamping -- a bit of a college type look, I guess.  I love how the burlap ribbon adds that special touch.

Supplies:  Card stock: Very Vanilla, Lost Lagoon, Rich Razzleberry
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Mossy Meadow, Crumb Cake, Lost Lagoon, Soft Suede
Accessories: Burlap ribbon, Brights candy dots, gold dazzling details

The new holiday catalog is coming out September 1st, and my, oh my! it is full of beautiful things this year!  Almost every set is bundled with a matching set of framelits, with so many beautiful styles represented.  I have pre-ordered several of my absolute must haves, so stay tuned for coming attractions! :)