ormolu

A Reason to Smile & Bungalow Flair Giveaway

 

Do you ever give cards for no reason? I know I love to drop a card in the mail to greet someone unexpectely.
I think sending mail has become very underrated in the past few years, and you never know when someone
needs a little pick-me-up.

I like to have cards on hand, so I whipped up this card to send out to someone special when they aren't expecting it.

I used a few patterned papers, staples and bling, sprayed the entire card with pearl mist and thought "smile" was a sentiment that could be used for any occasion.

Notice the cute little house flair from the new Bungalow collection?

If you'd like to win a pack of this flair, leave a comment on this post by 8 p.m. PST today and a winner will be announced tomorrow. Good luck!

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And the winner of yesterday's giveaway for the set of Bungalow Clock Flair and Summer |2012 button is: 

Angie, please contact Kaitlin at ormoludesign(at)gmail(dot)com so we can get those out to you. 

Thank you so much everyone for commenting and check back tomorrow to see if you won today's giveaway- and for another giveaway :) 

Travel Mini Albums

 

 

I love mini albums. I like the idea of keeping record of an event, trip or subject in a small, maneagable format.

A few years ago, I found an idea via the internet to make mini travel albums with Moleskine journals. I made a journal of a trip to Chicago and New York City, and loved how much information I could pack into such a small book.

Since my husband and I are planning a trip to Seattle and Portland this fall, I thought it might be a good time to get started on my albums!

 

Working on the covers is probably my favorite part. I like to use airport codes (PDX and SEA) for the city, so I can know at a quick glance which album I want to flip through.

On my Portland album, I layered fabric, different patterned papers, stamps, Thickers and the cute little car button from the Go Flair set. On my Seattle set, I used the cute grey and yellow arrow from the Go Dots n' Spots set. I tried to keep the same color theme, and the Ormolu products coordinated perfectly.

In my Portland and Seattle albums, I also lined my pages with cardstock. This gives the otherwise thin pages some heft, and will allow me to journal on the lined pages during and after my trip. I am also leaving room to include memorabilia as well as a few embellishments.
 

I can't wait to go on my trip, print out some tiny photos and drop them into my pre-made album. Hope this inspires you to make a little album yourself!

xoxo,

Stephanie

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Mother's Day Wishes

It's that time again....Mother's Day is just around the corner. And because I knew Mother's Day was coming up, I decided to get started early. One week early, in fact.

I don't know about you, but I've been told time and again that getting a handmade card is on the top of my mom's "want" list. I've even been  chastised when, in a rush, I didn't have time to make something and mistakenly strayed into the card aisle at Target.

Call me a creature of habit, but I just love the flair. Line & Letter Flair, in fact. I feel like you can make a super fancy card, add a ton of embellishments, and it's somehow not finished until you put that last button on.

Well, fingers crossed that this thing even makes it through the mail.

Don't forget to tell your mom, or a mom you know that you love them on their special day! And I'm sure they wouldn't be offended if you make them a card, either.

xoxo,
Stephanie

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Saying Happy Birthday

My sweetie is turning 31 tomorrow, so I thought I'd put together a birthday card for him. 31 is one of those odd birthdays that no one really makes a big deal out of, but I feel that every birthday is a reason for crafting ;)

I started with a kraft base, a few old supplies (how about that Love, Elsie line?!?!), Ormolu 2-Day Hooray Number Flair Buttons and Fact or Fiction Dots n' Spots.

I added a scrap piece of scalloped paper, whose origin I can't seem to remember, a few pieces of chipboard, a realllly old American Crafts "Celebrate" rub on, and stitched it all together, rounded the corners and viola --- done until next year!

Here's hoping he'll like his card, the key lime pie he requested and the presents I got him. If nothing else, I got to use up some of my very, very old supplies (and some great Ormolu ones, too!)

xoxo,
Stephanie

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Don't forget Ormolu's Creative Team call- check out this post here for more information!

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Scrapping Where You Live

How often do we scrap an event, or the same layout about the one we love, or something we own?

Throughout the last few seasons, and a commute that encourages me to walk through my city daily, I've taken notice of how much I love my city. I love the landscape, the people, my job, my home....I've been really blessed to have decided on a whim to move here over 10 years ago. I decided to scrap a few Instagram photos and name my layout "CHA" which is the airport code for Chattanooga.

I love little bits and pieces and layering, so the Fact or Fiction Flair Buttons,   Fact or Fiction People, Places, Things Flair and the Fact or Fiction Flappers were perfect for surrounding my photos.

I love the shine you get from the flair, and the contrast of the texture next to the matte paper.

This layout came together really quickly---just a few Ormolu pieces and a couple of pretty photos!
Hope this inspires you to scrap where you live, whether it's your city, your state or your home.

xoxo,

Stephanie

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Project Life: Getting Ready

I'm pretty bad at long, drawn out projects, like December Dailies, 365 photos, and other popular projects. I have a difficult time setting aside time every day, week or month for documentation. That's why it's March 6th and I have yet to finish my second page of Project Life.

Part of me is disappointed, bummed that most people are on week eight and I've barely stuck my toe into the water. Then I stop and realize that it's not my style to craft every day, or get a project done simply to check it off my list. For me, these projects are how I feel about scrapbooking in general---quality, not quantity.

So this post isn't about my fifth, sixth or seventh week into Project Life, it's about my beginning.

I hoarded the silhouette tag from the Vignette line, and used it on my cover page:

And I'm sprinkling in a few Fact or Fiction Flappers, and Fact or Fiction Dots n' Spots:

And I think this is a great opportunity to throw in a few Fact or Fiction Flair Buttons:

And I'm fully planning on using a few Fact or Fiction Storytellers from the digital downloads section of the shop. This will make it easier to have a cohesive look and be able to print off as many tags as I want.

So don't get discouraged when it comes to project timelines. Take it easy and enjoy the process!

xoxo,
Stephanie

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Scrapping Outside Your Comfort Zone

I tend to scrap the same colors over and over again. Blacks, greys, greens, blues, teals, oranges and yellows.

For this layout, I decided to take some inspirationfrom this photo and the Ormolu Vignette Dots n' Spots and go with a sherbert/brown color scheme.

I used lots of layering with this one, making flags out of stickers, adding on wooden buttons, cork and using foam dots for dimension.

 

I love how the simple tag brought me full-circle (pun intended!) with this layout. I simply needed to step outside of what I normally do!

Hope this inspires you to try something new on your layouts!

xoxo,

Stephanie

An Un-Valentine Valentine

Still on a card kick here---this time around, with a bit of a challenge. I dare you to get out your scraps and make an un-Valentine's Valentine. Stray away from the typical pinks and reds of the season and try a new color combo.

Here's the card I made with a red, yellow and grey theme, using the Line & Letter Mix Tags and the Fact or Fiction Flappers :

 

I feel like it's still romantic without being Valentine-themed.

So dig through your scraps, post a link to your cards here, and I'll draw a winner next Tuesday. The winner will win a $5 gift certificate to the Ormolu shop!

xoxo,
Steph

**** Updated with my random.org pick... Jen Kinkade, you're the lucky winner! Thanks to everyone who played along!

 

Stephanie | 1/17

With Valentine's Day coming up, I took a little time over the weekend to get an early start on a few cards. My husband and I don't really spend money on each other on Valentine's, but I always do my best to make him a card.

For this, I took a few Line & Letter Chevron tags, cut them in half, alternated them on the card, then layered elements from the Fact or Fiction Dots n' Spots, the Fact or Fiction Flappers and Line & Letter Mix Tags.

I misted, added a few staples and a Tim Holtz film transparency. Then I cut the edges along with the Chevron pattern for a little added element.

The card turned out masculine, which is the look I was going for. I had fun putting it together and I think my sweetie will be pleased to receive it!

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Merry Christmas!

A little early, but the Creative Team and I are taking a break for the Holidays to spend time with our family and friends. We want to head out on our break with a thank you to our readers and for all of the support we have received throughout the year. So, in the spirit of Christmas, each of us made a card... our version of sending cards to our readers.

We hope you have a Merry Christmas, Happy Holiday and safe travels. We will be back in the new year! 

Christa Paustenbaugh

Emily Spahn

Marti Cobb

Stephanie Wheeler

Melanie Louette

Pam Brown

Amanda Probst

Kaitlin Sheaffer