Just A Scrappin' "SUMMER FUN" Blog Hop

Hello fellow bloggers and followers! 


Happy Summer! Is it a hot one for you too? We've seen temperatures go as high as 36C here! Yikes!

We are celebrating the Fun of Summer with our Design Team members.  They have made projects to show what they like about summer. (What's not to like?)

If you are just stopping by please start at the beginning at Just A Scrappin' 

If you are following the hop you should of arrived here from Happy Expressions then you are on the right track.  There will be a list at the end if you get lost along the way.

We have some fun blog candy for you to win today not only from Just A Scrappin' but from several of the individual Design Team members.  To be eligible for the blog candy you need to leave a comment on each of the members blogs.  Please become a follower so that you can see tons of talented members.  Please be sure to leave a way to contact you.

Here is my project! For this one, I chose to do a card:

 Here is the outside of my card. 

And the inside!

The card is 5 1/2" square. 

All cuts on the front are from the Creative Memories "Traveller" Cartridge. The fuchsia is from a Cricut paper stack and the white is from Dollarama. The teal base card stock is from Creative Memories, as is the yellow on the cup and shadowing the sentiment.
The back ground frame is cut at 5 1/2".
The drink is cut at 4 1/2"
The "Relax and Unwind" sentiment is cut at 1 1/2" (The white on "Relax" is "White Shimmer" card stock from Creative Memories)


On the inside, I used the positive cuts from the glass (yeah, I tried it in pink too... hehe) and glued them with my Creative Memories Precision Point Adhesive Pen. 
The waves are cut from the "White Shimmer" card stock using the "Wave" cartridge in the Border Maker System from Creative Memories


And there you have it! 


Now for the FUN!


For my Blog Candy, I am giving away a photo mat and vellum sentiment pack!
All in all you will recive 48 double-sided photo mats (some co-ordinating cardstock included!) and 10 vellum sentiments/quotes!
Yay!

Please have a look at my eligibility terms here

To enter to win, all you have to do is comment on this post and tell me what your favourite way to "Relax and Unwind" is.


Easy peasy!

Thank you for stopping by and taking the hop with us.  Your next fun summer stop is Patti's Paper Fun!

Here is the blog hop list incase you may have missed anything!

Bridget - http://crazycatladycraft.blogspot.com/

Nicole M - http://lovingvintagescrapbooking.blogspot.com/

Melitta - http://canadianpapershaper.blogspot.com/

Keia - http://confessionsofapaperholic.blogspot.com/

Liz - http://enchantress2614.blogspot.com/

Bree - http://bruiz1121.blogspot.com/

Joann - http://jwscrapshack.blogspot.com/

Belinda - http://designsbyqueenb.blogspot.com/

Annmarie - http://junegirl68.blogspot.com/

Michelle - http://justanutterpapercrafter.blogspot.com/

Sherry - http://scrapbookingandcardmakingbysherry.blogspot.com/

Barbara - http://spotofsanity.blogspot.com/

Cindy - http://cindyvernon.blogspot.com/

Marye - http://passionatlycrafty.blogspot.com/

Kim D - http://cardcreationsbykim.blogspot.com/

Carol - http://happyexpressions.blogspot.com/

Nicole D. - http://thinkcreatesave.blogspot.com/

Patti B - http://pattispaperfun.blogspot.com/

Thanks for hopping by! 

Here it is! My first challenge card!

Hello all you fabulous readers! HAPPY CANADA DAY!

I hope that your week has been going great.  Wow what a super challenge over at Just A Scrappin'!

This weeks challenge was "Weddings". Make a card, layout, or project, using any colours we wanted.  

Here is the card I came up with! I was a little strapped for time on this one, so it didn't get as fancy as I was hoping, but I still think it turned out great. :)

~ The card is 7"x5 1/4"

~ Base cardstock is "Midnight Shimmer"

~ Background cardstock is "White Shimmer". (6.5" x 4.75") Both are from Creative Memories it was embossed with a Cuttlebug embossing folder. I can't seem to find the name of it.

~ Sentiment is a title sticker from the "Divine" collection by Creative Memories. It is on non-embossed "White Shimmer" again. It is attached with one layer of pop dots on each corner.

~ The bride and groom are cut from the "Stretch Your Imagination" Cricut cartridge at 3". The black backing behind them is a tone on tone accent paper, also from the Creative Memories "Divine" collection. This was given a double pop dot on three corners and only one pop dot on the upper left hand corner.
On the inside I cut a plain white cardstock mat to use for writing on (6.5" x 4.75")

~ Paper trim on the top is an accent paper ("Divine" collection.)
~ Floral embellishment ("Divine" collection)

This card was fun and easy to make and I think it shares the emotions and elegance of the day quite well. :-)


Thanks for popping by! :-)

Canvas Subway Art

So a little while back when I was first introduced to the phenomenon known as Pinterest.com, I came across a DIY Home Decor pin that I just HAD to try. It was from the blog called Brassy Apple here and it looked incredibly easy. In the long run, it was. But I also hit a few speedbumps along the way.

So, here is my version of it!

Supplies:

• Pre-stretched canvas on wood frame. I bought mine at Michael's in a pack of 3 for around $12. They are 16x20, but you can use whatever size suits your needs
• Fabric. Mine is from Wal-Mart and it came in a pack of 5 co-ordinating pieces for around $6.00
• Spray Paint. I used Krylon, available at most hardware stores, mine is from Canadian Tire.
• Vinyl "mack tack"/contact paper from the Dollar Store
• Cricut Machine or a very sharp exacto knife and a steady hand
• Staple gun and staples
• "OK to Wash" fabric glue (at Wal-Mart)
• Ribbon for trimming and hanging

 How To:

1. Wrap your canvas with your fabric of choice and attach it to the back of the canvas with a staple gun.



Laying out the canvas, face down on the back-side of the fabric

~~ I found it helpful to cut a 45 degree slice in the fabric at the corners to help with folding it neatly.~~
 

Cutting on an angle

2. Cut your words out on the vinyl using your cricut. I also used a third party software called "Make The Cut!" to use fonts that were on my computer. I don't know if it's still available because Cricut (for obvious reasons) doesn't like it when customers don't have to buy their cartridges.

(if cutting the letters out by hand, this is where you would print the letters out on your home printer, then lay the page over your vinyl and trace the letters with a ball point pen to get the imprint of your words. Then carefully cut out with scissors or an exacto knife)



Make the Cut!

 3. Peel the vinyl letters (WITH backing off the cutting mat) and start laying out your pattern. You'll want to use words of different sizes to fill in gaps and just for visual interest.

4. Once your pattern is how you like it, start peeling the backing off the vinyl letters and start sticking them to the fabric.

5. After all the words are stuck down, take a good look at it and make sure the letters are completely flat, otherwise spray paint may get underneath them. Also, congratulate yourself! You're done the hard part!

6. Spray one light coat of spray paint over the entire fabric. Make sure to cover the sides as well. Try not to rush things by spraying one heavy coat. This could make your fabric too wet and it may wrinkle.

After one coat of paint


7. Wait about 12 hrs (I waited overnight) and give it one more coat of paint. Let it dry for at least an hour.

8. Peel off the vinyl letters and start to witness the beauty of your hard work!

9. I learned the hard way with regards to fabric and paint colours being too similar. I ended up with some letters that weren't visible. So, I ended up filling some of them in with a white paint pen and some pink fabric marker. I don't reccommend this, as it doesn't give you the clean, crisp look that the vinyl does. SO, choose your colours carefully.

 

10. OPTIONAL: Trim the edge with ribbon. I used "OK to Wash" by Aileen (available at WalMart). Use a very thin coat of this glue along the edge of the canvas and follow the label for setting times. You'll have to wait 3-5 minutes before attaching the ribbon to the canvas.

11. OPTIONAL: Attach a wider ribbon to the back of the frame with the staple gun for hanging.

VOILA!

Tips:

• Try to get a fabric that doesn't have too much pattern in it.
• Don't use a paint that is the same colour as the design in your fabric.
• You may need a hammer to get the staples to go in all the way.

Balloon Wreath Tutorial

Last year some time around Christmas, I got thinking about what I was going to do for decorations for my eldest son's birthday party. His birthday is in February! I swear, I was more excited about decorating for his birthday than I was for Christmas. When I get the urge to create something, I try my hardest to get it done. And done as cheaply as possible. (Hey, I never promised proper grammar on this blog!) I saw some of these wreaths available on Etsy for $50 - $75. There was no way I was paying that. So I set off to do it on my own.

Here's what you need to get started:

~ 18" straw wreath (purchased at Michael's) wrapped in plastic food wrap

~ 350 "Greening Pins" (the ones pictured here (in the brown boxes) are also from Michael's, but are available at Wal-Mart too, both in the florals dept.)

~ Balloons. The amount of balloons needed is equal to the amount of greening pins used. I used multi-colour balloons because I wanted to use this wreath for multiple birthdays for at least a few years.

For the sign in the center I used:

~white cardstock

~ matching grossgrain ribbon (one roll was PLENTY)

~ photo editing/design software of your choice (I used StoryBook Creator 3.0 for this, but Photoshop, or even MSPaint could work)

A few tips:

~ the smaller the diameter of wreath you make, the fewer pins and balloons you'll need. (and the cheaper the project will be in the end) I felt that 18" was a little on the large side. A 16" wreath would likely be a more managable size.

~ I thimble may be helpful for pushing in the pins. They aren't hard to get in, but after the first 20 or so, your thumbs will start to get a bit sore.

~ This is what a greening pin looks like: 

Let's get going!

1. Wrap your straw wreath in plastic food wrap. It doesn't have to look pretty, it's just to keep the wreath from falling apart as you work with it.

2. Take a greening pin and place an uninflated balloon over the bottom of the "u" of the greening pin.

3. Stick the pin into the wreath.

4. Repeat this process, placing the balloons reasonably close together. Don't worry about filling in the gaps just yet, waiting until you have the balloon covered and the colours spread out works much better.

To create the sign:

1. Draw a circle in your design software. fill it with your favourite colour or pattern. Add in your text. (Mine says "Welcome to my party, I am so happy to see you, come on in!" Add in your graphics (I added a balloon and a cupcake as graphics)

2. Print the circle out on card stock. Cut it out.

(Alternatively, you could also cut a circle out of your favourite scrapbook paper/cardstock and add a solid coloured circle with the text printed on as a layer on top)

3. String one length of ribbon across the diameter of the wreath on the back. Attach with greening pins.

4. Glue circle to the ribbon.

5. Attach a half length of ribbon to the top back of the sign for stability.

Add a loop of ribbon to the back of the wreath with a greening pin for hanging, and VOILA!

Of course, you don't have to use multi-coloured balloons or even balloons at all. You could experiment with different materials for different occasions such as Christmas or Easter (plastic eggs maybe?)

I'd say once everything was done, total cost was approx. $25-30. A far cry from what they are charging on Etsy, not including their shipping costs.

Have fun!