The One That Didn't Make It

Okay... I'm sharing this post because these last two weeks have been rough and I was so determined to get this project done... BUT I missed the deadline... imagine that ! :)

I love Eclectic Paperie's Challenges ... sometime I actually post my projects ... but most of the time I participate in my mind :) . Do check out their blog http://eclecticpaperie.blogspot.com/. They are doing something new this year... I haven't quite gotten my schedule aligned  with theirs yet!
Last months challenge was altered books.
 I altered a book I bought from the thrift shop... so much fun!

There is no title on it yet because I'm not sure what I want to put on it.
I used Tim Holtz's  Melange  Tissue Wrap and Graphic 45's Sweet Chamomile from the Botanical Tea Collection to cover my book. I embellished it with Idea-ology word bands and vintage corners; ribbon and pearls from my Michael's stash. Oh I almost forgot I used my Tim Holt's Latticework Stencil too !  This was my first altered book using gesso... a new experience for me but I will be using it again. I've seen several uses of the gesso and I'm anxious to try my hand at it. Well that's it for now. My CEO ( Lefty ... the oldest cat) is rolling his eyes at me; I have made a big mess today ... working on three projects ; his favorite spot is cluttered !
Have a great night... don't forget tomorrow is April Fools Day ! I shall behave ( maybe...)!
April Fool's Day has always been one of my favorite days. Of course I missed it last year as I was admitted to the hospital ... so I may have to make up for  a missed year... hummm ...

12 Tags of 2014 March Tag

 March  2014 Tag

It's Tag Time ! I'm sliding  in this month ...
 Just not enough time this month; too much life ! National Craft Month came and went again ( I said I was going to craft All month... hahaha ) ... maybe next year !!

Another month of AWESOMENESS !  I've been WOWED !! I gotta say ... I had to do some "embracing of imperfections " more than I cared to this month but since I hadn't been feeling well I'm not going to complain. I'm happy to play along .

This month the technique was a smudge technique ... OMG ... this was fun... seriously ... if you have never done this you gotta try it ! Go check out Tim's instructions  http://timholtz.com/12-tags-of-2014-march/ .
I loved this. Oh and using the spritzer... so fun ( so glad mine got here on time). You gotta get one of these. On my second tag my stenciling was not so great as I left the top off the markers ( rushing trying to make deadlines) and they weren't working well second time around ... not to worry I put the tops back on they'll be ready for my next use ! I got the new jute ... yummy colors... you'll want some of those too ! Okay... I'm beat ... I definitely "overdid "  it today ... trying to make deadlines ... it's been fun ( I only made two deadlines) :(  Check out my next post to see what  did not make the deadline... it was awesome ! See you next month... Keep an eye out for the start of the Compendium III Challenges ; they should be fun. I will try and keep up ! Do check Tim's blog for the  Tim communities March Tags they're pretty cool !

Splash Of Color

Splash Of Color March Monthly Challenge

Hi everybody... March is marching right on out as fast as it came... did you notice that ?
WOW that time flew by... Well I'm here last minute again... but you know how I love to play! Inspiration Emporium's  http://blog.inspirationemporium.com/?p=2114um  theme this month  is Splash of Color.
Having been sick for a week and a half I didn't know definitely what I wanted to do. I started out with one plan... BUT my mind and my hands were not working together... I had two components of this project done and they were NOT working together as I had dreamed it ( back to the drawing board ... lol )!
Okay so my background was all complete... I was really liking it but my Julie Doll's outfit wasn't working for me ... OH YEAH ... I forgot to tell you... I'm playing with a little bit of Everybody today... Wendy Vecchi, , Tim Holtz and Julie Nutting.

I was having a play with the toys you have kind of day. I had this handmade piece of  card stock with these distressed edges, that was just begging to be inked with a combination of Tim Holts distressing ink  and Wendy Vecchi  archival inks ... going for the brights !! I used peeled paint, wild honey, shabby shutters (Tim Holtz) , potting soil and orange blossom (Wendy Vecchi). A yummy combination! I used Wendy's fresh flower stencil and Tim's latticework stencil . I absolutely loved the results. I used Tim's Classic #4 stamp set as well ! Next I played around with Julie's new Taylor Doll Stamp oh what fun ( there was a Taylor 1 and a Taylor 2... Taylor 1 was NOT playing well with the background... don't know what made me think that was going to work... maybe I'll share Taylor 1 in a later post... Okay so I'm "Out here" ... now what ! You ever have those moments?? I'm going to blame it on the aftermath of my bad cold ... lol !
Anyway... I just played... something to hang-up in my room ( on the back of the door ...hahaha) ! I'll call it an experiment... maybe I'll revisit it when I'm feeling better ... in the mean time enjoy. Go check out the  blog at Inspiration Emporium    http://blog.inspirationemporium.com/?p=2114 ... those girls were amazing with their Splashes. Alright see you next month !

Zebra Diva Baby Shower

The "Zebra Diva" Baby Shower was so much fun. Every thing came out so nice... my niece was pleased. It was so fun making the Zebra's and planning everything out. Themes are so fun to play with for showers and parties. My niece's color scheme was zebra print and hot pink. I got lots of inspiration from Pinterest ( you can checkout my Zebra Diva Shower Ideas Board).  So many creative people with fun ideas !

 My Cricut got a work out... I used FOUR Cricut cartridges ( I'm so very proud of myself) some of these were first time ever projects !
I used Baby Steps for the bows for the clothespin game and the onesie for the baby girl banner. I used Create A Critter for the adorable Zebra's. Plantin SchoolBook for the lettering on the banners and the yard sign. And Pretty Pennants for the two banners.

My yard sign was a zebra place mat I bought from Dollar Tree; and my brother cut the sticks for me... I just told him what I wanted and fifteen minutes later he came back and said  "that's the best I can do on short notice"... he's just so cool like that !

I thought I had a better photo of the Baby Girl Banner with the cute onesie... but I couldn't find it. I wanted to show off that onesie... it was done with hot pink cardstock  and zebra print (Cricut Baby Steps p. 36) ... the hot pink was the under layer and the zebra print was top layer with pink flower and I put black bling on the cuffs and at the crouch... they looked like snaps ... just too cute !! ( I found some more photos... yay ! )

Zebra print was everywhere... on the cupcake stand, the water bottles, the napkins, the tissue paper in the floral center pieces. I used silk  Gerber daisies in ivy bowls, with black pebbles at the bottom, wrapped in zebra tissue paper!

Like I said the Zebra Theme was so much fun, the pencils they used for the games and the game sheets were also zebra print ! The guestbook/gift register was ... you guessed it Zebra print. It was a Journal  I bought from Michael's that I embellished with various ribbons ... black and white polka dot, pink with black stitching, solid hot pink, and solid black. It was so cool ... I could not find the initial J  ( I searched three stores... LOL )for baby's name but I got P for the family name.
My favorite  if I had to pick just one thing and that would be hard)was the black clothesline with the zebra print outfits ! But truth be told I LOVED it ALL. The dessert table(s) ... yes tables ... it over flowed so we added a table were fun; chocolate cupcakes with pink butter creme icing and a candy bar with variety of pink and black  candies !! I so loved putting that part together; there were good n' plenty, white taffy, pink/black chocolate coins, pink and black bubble gum balls, black gourmet jelly beans and pink chocolate candies ... fun , fun ,fun ! It was a family affair so I had something for all ages. Other treats included chocolate dipped Oreos and sugar cookies and chocolate dipped marshmallows which were definitely a hit with the youngest member of the family !!

I was so busy that I forgot to take pictures once it was all set up before the shower, but I hope what I did get gives you a pretty good idea what it looked like ! I hope you enjoyed the view !

Oh and I almost forgot the cupcake toppers  were designed by the gracious Marisol Figueroa from
Modishly Delish. I saw these on Catch My Party and was able to contact her for the design! Thank you again Marisol !