StarLitStudio

the perfect pair of shoes

Today's project was so much fun to create - I love to stamp then cut out stamped images... as long as it isn't too tedious.    These Lockhart Party Shoes are perfectly paired with what I think is a perfect sentiment from Quietfire.

Red bling and a black Copic marker finished off the shoes - the shoe in the background was adhered directly to the Nestabilities Large Scallop Circle and the shoe in the foreground was mounted with dimensionals.

Rub-ons (the line of yellow flowers and the yellow flourish) and papers are from October Afternoon Thrift Shop.

A Memory Box Eggshell card base was used, and a coordinating envelope was lined with more Thrift Shop paper using the Memory Box envelope liner template.  Card interior uses up the line of rub-ons.  Hope you are having a great weekend and thank you for stopping by today!!

using up coordinating odds and ends - that Basic Grey stuff

When Ellen got in Basic Grey's Green At Heart a while back, I fell in love and purchased a bunch of the components that all coordinated with the pretty Green At Heart patterned papers. 

They do this - Basic Grey - they develop and manufacture all these pretty patterned papers, but with those pretty papers they offer so many wonderful embellishments - and it is really hard, almost inhumanly difficult, not to get some (or all) of them.

I think it's like saying, "Oh here is one yummy, salty, delish potato chip.  That was good, eh?  Oh, you want one more?  OK.  Ohh, so good!  How about another?"  You get the idea.  Basic Grey is smart.  Their 'bellies to their pretty papers are the mashed potatoes to my meatloaf.

Well, the Green At Heart schtuff got here and I was busy with orthodontist appointments and shipping orders and laundry and you know how that goes...

Many moons later...and in the process of cleaning out and organizing I found them all - Well Green My Little Heart...Basic Grey's stuff was prettier than I remembered... and I dove in!  Used them all up!  No holding back!  Papers and embellishments!  All! 

So here are some of the goodies I quickly made - I made several other cards and two other notebooks that I gave away before I could take a pic - you've never done that, have you? lol...

Those pretty Take Note overlays - I looked at them and could not figure out what the heck to do with them - I ended up using them all on a few cards and notebooks and loved them - I used brads to adhere the clear layer on the card above.

I used another Take Note overlay on the notebook above.  This I really liked.  I used a chunk of adhesive under the large metal-rimmed tag, and used some vellum adhesive on the rest (hid it under the flowers). 

Manufacturers try and convince us their vellum adhesives are invisible, but who are we kidding - maybe we crafters have x-ray vision - developed from our extreme exposure to vast amounts of mod podge fumes and embossing powders.  Maybe it's because you. can. see. the. adhesive.

Notebook interior - another one of those overlay thinggies, a clippie, and a butterfly - the butterfly is from Prima. 

So I'm in this militaristic mode of cleaning out and using up what I have - and finding merchandise and tools that were purchased, never used, tucked away, and subsequently forgotten.  So now, it's like 'shopping', due to memory lapse.  Is there a term for that?  Maybe instead of PMS it can be MLS - Memory Lapse Shopping.  lol... Many thanks for stopping by for my share today!!

twinchie notebooks & inchie card

I officially have an addiction to rub-ons.  I love how professional they make my cards look and the fast, perfect results.  Am I the only one?  I almost prefer them to stamping a sentiment.  Almost.

For today's projects I'm using Inchie Arts' Inchie Squares and Twinchie Squares.  The card above is a Wheat Inchie Square from an assortment color pack. 

I added a 7gypsies Thank You rubbing to the Inchie Square, followed by a Jenni Bowlin butterfly.  A card layer was run through a Sizzix embossing folder as well as the envelope flap.

The card base is an Inchie Note, and the finished card size is 3-1/2" square.  Perfect size for a quick thank you note.

 

The next Inchie project consists of three notebooks - these measure 2-1/2" x 8" and the lined pads are from Papertrey Ink.  Decorative papers are October Afternoon Fly a Kite.  The pretty lace is from Ellen, and the stamp set used is Michelle Wooderson's Take Note from Papertrey Ink. 

I seriously love Mish's Take Note stamp set - it has been out for months and I don't ever think I'm putting it away!  These notebooks will make great teacher gifts this year!

Tim Holtz's Hinge Clips add some interest at the top of each notebook, and the ivory Twinchie Squares create a depth and sturdiness, and a bit of classiness to the focal butterfly embellishment.  Butterflies are from Jenni Bowlin.  Thank you for stopping by today!

paper scraps? no problem.

I glitterfied (love that word) my second favorite Lockhart Stamp Company Cupcake in today's card. 

My new favorite Lockhart cupcake image is a brand-new Cupcake with a bow!  How perfect is this!?:

Karen Lockhart has brand-new, wonderful images just released, and you can view them all here.  

Ever feel like your paper scraps are weighing you down - so pretty but oooh so many - too many....I used today's layout (from my friend Val, whom I happily got to see and visit with at CHA).  Just pick three that go well, cut them each into a square, distress the edges if you want and add a button that 'speaks to you'.  You know what I mean.  I made a few with this layout and cleaned out some - but if you're like me there's a ways to go...

I glitterfied the Lockhart Cupcake using Icicle Stickles, and the cherry is a Dew Drop.  The cupcake liner is paper pieced with decorative paper - which is all leftover October Afternoon Fly a Kite.

 

Interior sentiment is from Hero Arts (seize the cupcake) and Wordsworth, and the verse on the card front is from Papertrey Ink.  Finished card size is 5-1/4" square. 

Do you have a  favorite cupcake?  I think the most delicious cupcake I ever had were these chocolate cupcakes that had a sour cream filling, and that filling had chocolate chips in it too.  That was maybe four years ago.  

I can't be thinking of cupcakes.  Next 5K is less than four weeks away!

anniversary card

Anniversary cards are one of the more infrequent types of cards I have to make, and I had out these little heart slider charms that Maya Road used to sell so they got worked into this card.

Papertrey's Simple Little Things set was out so it got inked up.  October Afternoon Fly a Kite papers were used, and the grid line paper used to align the stamps is the back of Garden.

Ink - Distress Aged Mahogany; fancy tag die is from Ellen.  After the tag was die cut it was was airbrushed with a light blue Copic marker while the die was still in place.

Crochet ribbon is from May Arts.

Interior sentiment is from Penny Black.  Card base and coordinating envelope is Memory Box Bayou. 

The Happy Anniversary sentiment is from Papertrey's Mega Mixed Messages set.  The beautiful pale blue pearls on the tag are Memory Box Frost Blue.  Thank you for stopping by today!

birthday banner

My youngest turned eight this week, and I created a birthday banner from October Afternoon's Fly a Kite line.

I learned how to make these banners from the wonderful Kelly Lunceford - her banner tutorial made this project very easy to create.

I have three children, the 'happy birthday' banner will be the same for each child's birthday.  I'll just create separate banners with each individual child's name on it to hang on the right side bay window.  On the left bay window I plan to make another, larger-in-size banner with the age of the child, but the chipboard numbers aren't here yet...lol...

Kelly is a genius!  Chipboard letters are kaisercraft large lowercase that I inked direct-to-paper with Distress Black Soot followed by dabbing and smoothing out the color with a Adirondack Black Dabber.  Banner bases measure 4" x 6" and the flowers are 12" x 1-1/2".  I followed the directions for the banner link above.  Thanks for stopping by today!

bridal shower wine tags

I had a custom order - tags for wine bottles to be given at a bridal shower.

I had not heard of this, but evidently it is all the rage now: the bridesmaids coordinate a gift basket of wine bottles to celebrate milestone occasions in the couple's future life together, such as 'first fight', 'first dinner party', and so forth.  The decorated wine bottles are presented to the bride at a bridal shower.

The tags I created were for 'wedding night' and 'first anniversary'.  Seeing that these were to adorn wine bottles  I immediately thought of a tag concept and created these:

They are designed to be tied onto a wine bottle like this:

It sounds like a fabulous idea for a bridal shower.  I googled the concept and found this site for more occasions. 

supplies:  Nesties Labels One, Prima Mini Gypso flowers,  7gypsies velvet leaves, Heidi Swapp clock faces, Tim's Game Spinners, silk ribbon.  I found the wedding rings at Michaels maybe a decade ago.

Hope you are having a good week and thank you for stopping by today!

paper roses

I have had so much fun making these dimensional roses - I learned this on dozi's blog.  I'm using October Afternoon's Farm Fresh papers and congratulations rub-ons from DCWV Rub On Quote Stack.

The base of the two roses is a Twinchie - a two-inch square, top-quality matboard.  The wheat-colored Twinchies were a perfect solution to support the weight of the roses, machine-stitched mat and leaves. 

The dimension provided by the Twinchie really kicks this simple and basic card up a notch.

Interior verse is another rub-on from the quote stack.  I love this layout - it is inspired by one from Jennifer McGuire.  Card base measures 5-1/2" x 3".  The finished card size overall is 5-1/2" x 4-1/4".  Pearls are from Hero Arts.  Thank you for stopping by today!

birthday flower

edited to add:  the flower how-to is from Betsy Veldman and her post regarding this is here.

Ever get into a creative rut or stuck in a creative pattern?  This happens to me every so often, and when it does I go simple and streamlined for a while. 

Strano Designs 5/8" Margot striped ribbon was used along with a folded flower design I learned from Betsy Veldman's blog. 

I used Papertrey's Polka Dot Basics II Impression Plate, Memory Box Endive and Bayou cardstocks, and an Imaginisce i-top tool.  Sentiment is from Alli Miles' Take Three Summer set.  Patterned papers are from October Afternoon's Thrift Shop line.

Classic Flourish on the Bayou envelope is from Hero Arts, and sentiment is from Papertrey Ink (Ranger Archival Black and Distress Broken China).  Thank you for stopping by today!

cha 2010 & amy butler inchies

2010 Summer CHA was smaller in size and attendance than the last time I went, which was the summer of 2008.  I am thankful that the store is still going strong, and the attendance and size was approximately one-fourth to one-third the size it was two years ago. 

This time I made sure I brought my Layers book by Shari Carroll, and when she had a moment alone I politely approached her and asked if she would autograph it for me.  She was kind and generous, and after she signed the book she asked if I had a camera and would I like a photo.  Um, Yes and please! One of the gals working the Hero Arts booth kindly took this pic for me.  Totally made my day.

I will not go to another CHA again without touring it with Sherry Cheever, or Bad Sherry to most of you.  OMW this woman is like my soul sister, and I missed her my first day home.  Sure wish we lived closer, but I am convinced law enforcement would eventually not take kindly to our full, bad-side potential.  I am kidding.  Or maybe not.

Met with Micki Harper, Daisy from Eclectic Paperie, some of my shistah girlfriends - Nancy, Hooty, HB (Carol Halvorson), Bevie Pearl, Donna and Navy.  I ate breakfast one morning sitting next to the beautiful Nichole Heady (who looked stunning as a brunette with chunky blonde highlights!), her DH and the talented and gorgeous PTI design team (gentle hugs to dear Mish who had surgery yesterday).  Micki has a great shot of everyone in her post here.

There were so many wonderful, new products - I'll just mention my personal favorites as a paper/altered artist:  Tim's Configurations by Advantus and Wendy Vecchi's Art Parts.  Second best thing?  The Imaginisce I-Rock tool and the bling, which eclecticPaperie will be carrying, and Viva Decor's Pearl Pens, which I think eP will carry but I ordered them too.  Viva Decor won two awards at this CHA, and it was easy to see why:

Pearl paint, in a squeeze-style pen, that creates a perfect bead of pearlescent paint.  You control the size of the bead.  Non-self-leveling.  Use on paper, fabric, etc.  Oh and when it's dry...yep - machine washable.  More info here.  They had an incredible make & take but it took 45 minutes to complete - I believe Micki details this particular project on her blog. 

OK something artsy to finish this post off with - a few cards created using Amy Butler glitter paper, glitter rub-ons, fabric tags and covered brads, and combining them with Ivory colored Twinchies.  The Twinchies are two-inch square, highest quality matboard art accessories that totally finished these cards in spectacular fashion.

 

I hand-cut and shaded the flower pots.  I am currently training for my next 5K, scheduled for next month to benefit our local food bank.  Gotta run!  Thank you for stopping by today!