About once per quarter I offer a class for fellow Stampin' Up! Demonstrators only.  This class not only serves as an ocassion for them to be able to attend an evetn rather than plan one, but also gives us all hands-on exposure to new projects and techniques prior to introducing them to our other friends and customers.  This weekend we tried a couple techniques using Stampin' Up!'s Decor Elements line with fabric.  Our shirts turned out really nice!  I took pictures of them, and I want to share with you one of my favorites.  This is Marty's design.  She took a piece of raw vinyl and cut out the Stampin' Up! Tulipe with the Big Shot.  She then carefully applied this delicate design to her shirt, and sprayed the area with bleach.  Once the desired bleaching occurred, she rinsed her shirt and removed the vinyl.  This is such a fun technique.  It's a very simple concept too, but it does require a little patience.  Especially if you choose a more detailed pattern such as Marty did here.  It took both of us to get the Tulipe design layed out on her shirt, but it sure turned out beautiful!  And I can tell her so right here because I know she'll read this post.  :)  Thanks for coming to class, Marty!  And thank you to all of the Demonstrators who attended.  It was a really fun night!  I'll be posting another one of our projects tomorrow.

In the meantime keep in mind that for a limited time, you can earn a free Decor Elements piece.

Make Stampin' Up! your one-stop shop for all your holiday gift-giving needs. With our Gift-Giving Guide you can quickly and easily find gifts for kids, teens, neighbors, and more! Plus, get a FREE Décor Elements (up to a $16.95 value) when you spend $50 on products in the guide.

Visit my Online Store today to place your order!

My website: http://juliajackson.stampinup.net

 

Calling all card-makers!  Our local Girl Scout Service Unit is assisting with a project to supply less fortunate children with the items they need to have a birthday celebration.  They are currently collecting items that will finally be put together into Birthday kits that will be given to local out reach workers who will in turn distribute the packages to those families who would otherwise not be able to give their child a birthday party.  If you would like to help too, simply hand stamp some birhtday party invitations, thank you notes, party favors or whatever else you can think of.  If you don't have the time to stamp, I would be happy to place your order for the Princess and/or Pirate Party kits and donate them on your behalf.  (Please let me know by Friday, November 6th to receive the order in time.)  And of course, if you want to go all out, they will certainly accept items that can't be stamped such as cake mixes, frosting, candles, etc.  Please get all donations to me by Friday, November 13th.  And thank you in advance for your generousity and compassion for those children and families in need.

 

 The following article has exerpts taken from Scrapbooking Sketches - 8 Ways to Be More Productive by Monna Ellithorpe.  She made some great points and she uses the same inspiration as I do - sketches and scrap maps.  I also like to look at other people scrapbooks as well as Stampin' Up!'s Idea Book and magazines.  As a matter of fact, we will be using scrap maps/sketches to create 10 scrapbook pages at Gail's workshop next weekend.  Here is what Monna says:

Your scrapbooking layouts can make all the difference in how your pages look. The key is to have many scrapbook sketches available already there for you to choose from and to help you get over those times when your own creative ideas are at a standstill.

Your pages do not have to be perfect by any means and sometimes you will produce a page that no matter what you do, you are just not happy with it. Don't stress over it, just put it in your scrapbook and move on.  Remember scrapbooking is supposed to be fun, so don't make it into a chore just to get it done.

When you do find a sketch or layout that you like, experiment with it. Make your page about just one picture; add more pictures or less pictures; move them around; put the pictures on an angle; line them up and down or across. Walk away from it for a while and come back later with a fresh outlook and then just make the page and start another one.

I have discovered in my own scrapbooking sessions that if I have a sketch to go by, the hard part is already done. All you need to do is embellish with [stamped images], ribbons, buttons, lettering, or what ever kind of embellishments you like the most.

A very important part of scrapbooking is "do not forget the journal box on your pages." In the future when family and friends look at your creative scrapbooking efforts they will want to know what was happening at the time, who is in the picture and where they were. This will keep the interest of any one viewing your scrapbook pages. It is such a disappointment when looking at a scrapbook full of pictures and you have no idea of who the people are in the pictures; no dates; no notes; nothing. Journal on every page even if you cannot remember the details, put as much information in your journal block as you can.

If you have quite a few pictures of one outing, a birthday party or some other event, it is always a plus and if you have the room to lay out many sheets of cardstock and just start laying your pictures out on each piece of cardstock as you go along. I have used this technique quite a few times and have been able to produce up to 10 pages in one session in my scrapbooking room. Believe me it is a great feeling to get so much accomplished at one time.

Below are some suggestions to help make better use of your time with your hobby:

1. Gather all of your pictures together from a single event.

2. If you have the room, lay out many sheets of cardstock and lay the
pictures on the cardstock to get an idea of what pictures will go on which pages.

3. Have sketches available to use as a guide.

4. Gather your embellishments that you plan to use; maybe you have a theme or just plan to use whatever appeals to you at the time.

5. Decide if you are going to cut mats foryour photos.

6. Do not forget to make an area for journaling on each of your pages.

7. Don't worry if you are not able to finish your pages at one time. At least you have a start and the next time you have a few minutes a good portion of the decision making has already been done.

8. Last and most important, have fun and remember the event as you work on your pages.

Always remember enjoy your hobby so it doesn't feel like work.


"Copyright (c) Monna Ellithorpe. All Rights Reserved."

I got this cute pumpkin in a recent swap.  My sister demonstrator Laura made it with the pop up 3D ball die and her Big Shot.  It's a photo ball, but I have yet to put any pictures on it.  I thought it would be fun to put our trick-or-treat pics on it.  Maybe when I get them on it, I will post a new photo of the completed version.

Supplies used to make this project include the following:

Pumpkin Pie card stock and ink

Garden Green card stock

Basic Black ink

Night & Day DSP

Baroque Motifs stamp set

Twick or Tweet stamp set

paper crimper