Authentique Paper & Taylored Expressions Blog Hop

Welcome to the Authentique Paper & Taylored Expressions Blog Hop! If you came here from Charmaine Ikach's blog, you're on the right track! If not, make sure you don't miss out on a single project and start at the beginning on the Authentique Paper blog. This blog hop will take place April 11-12, so be sure to check back tomorrow for more inspiration! 

For my project, I chose to use the Quatrefoil cutting plate from Taylored Expressions along with the "Cherish" collection from Authentique Paper. The die is the perfect size for cards, but I wanted to try something a little different, so I went with a 4x4 canvas (I had to cut off about an inch off of the bottom of my cut). 

I adore my grandparents. My mother raised my younger brother, sister, and myself as a single mother, and without my grandparents love, support, and help, I don't know where we would be today. I wanted to create something that I could give to them just to show them that I love them. Authentique Paper's new "Cherish" petite collection was the perfect choice. It's so elegant and has several quotes & phrases for grandma and grandpa. This beautiful collection went along nicely with this die. 

I chose to add a little extra dimension to my project, so I cut with the die on two separate sheets of paper. I wanted to use the positive as well as the negative shapes on this project. The possibilities with this die are endless, I know that I will be using it for several more projects in the near future! 

Taylored expressions is offering a coupon code on their dies during the hop! If you were inspired by my project today, be sure to stop by the Taylored Expressions store and pick up this awesome Quatrefoil Cutting Plate at a nice discount! 

Coupon code is good for 10% off ALL dies in the TE store, just use code TENOFFDIES during checkout. 

The offer is good from April 11, 2013 until 11:59pm CST on April 19, 2013. 

Code is case sensitive and not available to wholesalers.

Be sure to stop by ALL blogs on the hop today and tomorrow and leave unique comments along the way for your chance to win an AuthentiquePaper/Taylored Expressions prize pack! You have until Monday, April 15th at 11:59 PM PST to leave your comments. One winner will be drawn from comments on participating blogs. 

Now hop right along and see what Keri Michaud has crafted up today!

If you get lost along the way, here is the hop order for today:

Authentique Paper- http://blog.authentiquepaper.com

Carole Burrage- http://motherslittlehelper.typepad.com/

Audrey Pettit- http://audreypettit.wordpress.com/

Charmaine Ikach- http://oodabugalley.blogspot.com/

Emily Lanham- http://www.createserendipity.net

Kerri Michaud- http://cardsbykerri.blogspot.com/

Angie Blom- http://angieblomdesigns.blogspot.com/  

Taylored Expressions- http://tayloredexpressions.blogspot.com/

Light it Up Blue Blog Hop

Welcome to the May Arts Ribbon Light it Up Blue Blog Hop! If you came from Dee Dee's blog, you're on the right track! If not, make sure you start at the beginning of the hop at the May Arts blog. 

Blue is the color for Autism Awareness, so to show our support today, the May Arts design team created a variety of "blue" projects specifically for this hop. 

I created a set of gift bags. 

I know my project isn't really centered on Autism Awareness, so I found stamps that had quotes that could pertain to the theme. 

I really liked this quote. 

These little bags are quick and easy to make and are great to have on hand for any occasion. 

Be sure to stop by all of the blogs in the hop today, leave unique comments for your chance to win these beautiful spools of ribbon! 

Now hop right along and see what Erin Thiem has in store for you today! 

Products Used:

May Arts Ribbon- 377-38-44, 441-78-94, AH03

DCWV- Juniper Breeze 6x6 stack

Unity Stamp Company- Quote Bundle Pack

Honeycomb midy bags

Inked Up Canvas Mini Album

It's my day to share what I made for my Imagein Crafts dt challenge project. I REALLY love this project. I have been anxious to make something with Purple. It's so hard to find paper with purple as a main color. Authentique Paper has done a fabulous job with their Remembrance collection, so I had to create something with it and my Imagine Crafts products (they coordinate soooo well with Authentique products!). 

Gather your supplies. You will need a blank canvas, I used a canvas book because I wanted to make a mini album, embellishments, paper, walnut ink, fireworks, dew drops. 

Begin spritzing your canvas. Get messy! This is the fun part because you can just go wild until you reach the look that you desire.   

I decided to add some stenciling, so I misted over my houndstooth stencil. 

After that, I sprayed a little more walnut ink & fireworks in various colors to get a nice blend. 

Next you will need some stamps. I don’t have many background stamps, so I chose a few versatile stamps to use throughout my book.   

Start stamping all over the place. It’s good to be random, especially if you are planning on covering up parts of your canvas with paper, photos, & embellishments. 

You can also add stencils to the inside of your book (if you do a book). This works on any canvas, I just love the idea of a canvas mini album because every page can be a new project in itself. 

Be sure to stamp with a darker color so you can see your stamped images. 

Once you are finished misting and stamping, take a heat tool and dry your canvas or if you don’t have a heat tool, you can let it air dry. 

Your canvas book will be different depending on the colors and stamps that you choose. Once it is dry, you can begin adding in the fun stuff to make your project come alive. 

Embellish and add photos and you have yourself one awesome project! 

I added photo mats to the inside and embellishments  I didn't add my own photos because I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep this one as a gift or not. It's always good to have a sympathy themed card or gift on hand. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Products Used:

Imagine Crafts: Memento- Pear Tart, Sweet Plum, Elderberry; Fireworks- Pear Tart, Lulu Lavender, Grape Jelly; Walnut Ink- Lilac, Willow

 Authentique Paper: Remembrance Collection: 12x12 Paper & 6x12 Components Stickers

Canvas Corp: Stitched Canvas Book

Petaloo- Flora Doodles flowers

Unity Stamp Company: SMAK Kit: Jan 2012

The Crafters Workshop: 6x6 Template – Mini Swiss Dot, Houndstooth 

May Arts: Various Ribbons

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DCWV/Tombow Spring Fling Blog Hop

Welcome to the DCWV/Tombow Spring Fling Blog hop!

This week, DCWV and Tombow have teamed up to spread a little bit of spring fever.  Both design teams are excited to show you just what we have done with the My Sunshine and Chickadee stacks from DCWV, and some amazing adhesive products from Tombow. 

If you have come here from (list the person before you in the hop) then you're on track! If not, you should go back to the Tombow blog (include link - http://blog.tombowusa.com/) and start today’s leg of the hop from there!

I decided to create a mini album out of paper bags for my project today. I just love making mini albums this way, they are so simple to make and they give you a lot more compartments for hidden tags for photos & journaling.

I used DCWV's "My Sunshine" Stack along with some of my favorite Tombow adhesives.

To make a paper bag album, all you need are a few paper bags. I like to use some of the plain kraft lunch bags along with some patterned little midy bags. I chose chevron kraft bags, I thought they would go well with this stack. 

Fold all of your bags in half and glue them together by alternating types of bags in each layer. 

Add some binding rings to the spine and cut some patterned paper about 5x5 inches. I decided to change my papers after I cut them, this stack is full of so many beautiful prints, it's hard to decide which to use! The possibilities are endless!

After you get the album assembled, glue down your papers and add some ribbons & embellishments. 

Be sure to visit all the projects featured this week and leave a comment for your chance to win!  We will be giving away both the My Sunshine and Chickadee stacks to 2 lucky readers, and one amazing package of Tombow Adhesive including NEW Stamp Runner Permanent Adhesive, NEW Stamp Runner, Dot Pattern Adhesive,  MONO Multi Liquid Glue, NEW Power Tabs and MONO Glue Stick, 0.77 oz to one other lucky reader!  The more you comment, the more chances you have to win!

Now, head on over to Erin on the DCWV Blog to see what kind of spring craftiness she has in store!

Hop Order for Today:

Marie - http://mariebrowning.wordpress.com/

Karla - http://madebykarla10.blogspot.com/

Emily - http://www.createserendipity.net/

Erin - http://dcwvinc.blogspot.ca/

Sweet Shower Gifts for a Baby Girl

Have you ever needed a last minute Baby shower gift and didn't have time to run to the store for one? That has happened to me soooo many times! When I got the new DCWV Baby Girl stack, I knew that I wanted to make a few baby shower bundles that were ready to give to the new mommy-to-be. Time doesn't always allow me to run out and buy a shower gift, and handmade is always the better route in my opinion. 
So here's my little baby shower bundle. I made a paper bag mini album, a door hanger, and a card. 

I love these little door hangers! I bought a pack of wooden hangers from Wal-Mart for a couple of dollars. They are nice to keep in the alterable items drawer. I think they make wonderful gifts, plus, my daughter always wants me to make her a new one for her door. 

This would be perfect for a baby girl's nursery decor. Pretty & pink! 

I love making albums out of paper bags. I always have a rather large stash of paper bags. They are the most fun mini album to make because you have so many hidden pockets for journaling tags and extra photos. 

I always add lots of coordinating ribbons to my projects. May Arts ribbons are the absolute best! The ribbons that I chose go really well with all of the bright colors in this stack too! 

I also made a little card. If you are giving away a gift, obviously it would be nice to attach a card, so why not have one that matches the rest of the gift?

Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you were inspired to get a jump start on some gift bundles! 

Products Used:

DCWV- Baby Girl Stack

May Arts- 353-15-27, 435-15-17, EN22, DD57, NP34, 377-38-01

Basically Bare- Little Banners, Hot Air Balloon Bare Embellies

An Everyday Recycled Notebook

It's cold and rainy/snowy here in Southern Ohio... the perfect excuse to pull out a stack of "Spring-like" paper to play with, right? I decided to craft with the new Sunday Afternoon stack by DCWV. This stack shouts Spring in every way, the colors are perfect and it simply just makes me happy. 

I always have trouble keeping notebooks around to jot notes in, so I decided to make one for myself. 

First, I gathered some supplies. The DCWV Sunday Afternoon Mat stack was the perfect size. I cut off some cardboard flaps from a shipping box to use for my covers. Of coarse, to bind it all together, I pulled out my trusty Cinch and some spiral wires to match. 

I cut my paper down to match the sizes of cardboard and glued them to the front and back of each cover. I also cut some plain computer paper down a little smaller than the covers. 

Next, I punched holes in everything with my Cinch and added the spiral wires to bind the notebook together. 

Lastly... I decorated the cover with lots of pretty ribbon and other embellishments.

Here's a little peek at the inside. 

Viola! My recycled altered notebook! 

I also made a little matching card with some of the scraps. I love the new mat stacks from DCWV because they have the scalloped edges. The pages are perfect for little cards like this one! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Products Used:

DCWV Sunday Afternoon Mat Stack

May Arts Ribbon- 443-5-28, 393-2-501, BY66, DD57

Maya Road- Turquoise Star Pins, Vintage Pearl Butterfly Trinket Pins

We R Memory Keepers- Cinch V2, 1" Lemonade Spiral Binding

American Crafts- Thickers