ormolu

Scrapping with scraps

Happy middle of the week to you all! My layout today is a pretty simple one. What I love about it, though, is the economy of it...I used scraps leftover from other projects in my creating and am happy with how it came out:

Yes. This is another layout taken straight from a blog post. ;) Beyond using words I already had, I also printed out that same picture, used a blank white package tag that hadn't made it onto another layout (hence it was already cut and needed a little something to cover stuff up, lol), used the positive portion of a negative package tag (the arrow), and used leftovers scraps of fabric swatches. I'm lazy and thrifty like that. ;) 

Here's a closer look at the fabric swatch scraps:

These were all just strips of fabric swatches that had been trimmed for other projects. I tend to throw stuff like that into a little bowl on my desk, pulling bits out now and then. The arrow is from the Go Negative Package Tags...I just used some markers and Glossy Accents on it before popping it up on foam squares. And, last but not least, I love how blank package tags plus a corner rounder can make such a nice little addition to the background. ;)

So. Do you save your scraps? What have you made with them lately? 

InLinkz.com

Ticket Book Super Mini

 

I was going back and forth on what I wanted to do today for my project/layout/card and kept switching between ideas about every minute and a half! Plus, have you seen the projects this week from the Creative Team?!!  I have a lot to live up to today!

For a long time I have wanted to do something with the Ticket Book because I thought it would make a really cute tiny mini book or project.  It finally came to me as I was flipping through the ticket book - a super mini reward ticket book for my girls.

I used the original tickets as a template and cut patterned paper out to layer and make little tickets for fun things to do with the girls.  PS - "dq" stands for the beloved Dairy Queen that is a mere 1/2 mile from our house!

Once I layered and embellished the tickets, I did a tiny bit of embellishing on the cover of the ticket book itself.  It was fine as is, but just wanted to add a pop of color.  Once I put the blue border down I knew I needed another pop for the title too.

I added a zig zag stitch where the staples used to be and a straight stitch to adhere it all together.  Let's just say that the machine was none too happy with the bulk and the stitching was less than stellar and less than pretty so I grabbed a small piece of washi and put it over the stitches!

After it was all finished I tied it up and it's ready to go!

Voila!  I am a fairly slow scrapper and from start to finish this took less than 30 minutes so I was very happy with that!  The ticket cutting probably took the longest!

 

InLinkz.com

This fact.

Just catching up a bit now that the holidays are over...finally finished this layout about my first 10K last November. :) (Shhh! We'll just ignore the many other layouts that remain unscrapped, lol!)

I love how smoothly this layout came together by simply tweaking the bits and pieces of Ormolu products that I had sitting on my desk. In particular, I cut the arrow out of a fabric swatch and stapled that on a trimmed package tag...curved the top of a negative number tag (just for fun)...and added a piece of flair to a flapper which sits above a remnant from that trimmed package tag and has a scrap of paper chain.

My favorite parts are the trimmed fabric arrow and the kraft on kraft number package tag (subtle but impactful when popped up on foam dots). What are your favorite ways to tweak Ormolu products?

InLinkz.com

Little Details

Hi there! Amanda here. ;) As we close out September, I just have a quick layout to share. This one's about the first 5K that I tackled (just last month!). To simplify things, I took the text right off my blog post about the day:

Other little things to note:

• In case you haven't noticed, I love popping elements up on my layouts using foam squares. ;) Here, the "run" ticket and the "1" are popped up (as is the "GO" button, though that comes that way). I feel like it adds dimension without going crazy.
• It's a little hard to see, but I actually did fold over one of the 2-day Hooray Flappers here...folded it over the top of the cardstock and stapled it right on.
• Also, I'm somewhat addicted to outlining my layouts with pen strokes, lol. For a wee bit more interest, I also doodled some running shoes in this instance. (The shoes are completely inspired by Run Like A Mother...which I highly recommend reading.)

And with that, friends, I'll wish you a lovely end of September and a fabulous October to come!

- Amanda
 

Ormolu Products Used:

Letter & Line Chevron Package Tags

GO Ticket Book

GO Button Embellishments

2-Day Hooray Flappers

Creative Team | Embellishing Tags

Day at the Zoo by Christa Paustenbaugh

Products used: TreeHugger Dots n Spots, TreeHugger Storytellers

Christa says: 

I had ordered small prints of the animals from our day at the zoo quite a while ago and it happens that they were perfect for fitting inside several of the circle Tree Hugger Dots n Spots.  I used my circle punch and layered the spots and photos within one another, also using them as an embellishment in the grid.  I wanted the journaling to look the same so I just took one of the Storyteller cards and punched it as well and simply journaled inside.

Love how Christa added the  embellishments and layered the circle tags giving them added interest, texture and dimension. 

C25K by Amanda Probst

Products Used: Vignette Dot n' Spots, Negative Number Package Tags, 2-Day Hooray Number Button

Amanda says: 

This layout is a little 8x8 one for an album I'm making for myself about adding running to my lifestyle. It's about the Couch to 5K program that I used and I love how the number button and negative number package tag worked together for the title. I put the negative number package tag on foam dots so that you can see the "5" a bit better. :)

 

Amanda pieced alphabet tags, number flair and the negative number tag to create the title on her page which really drew me into her page and helps stretch her stash a bit farther. 

Last Day on Nine  by Melanie Louette

Products used: Vignette dots & spots, Treehugger button embellishments, Treehugger flappers

Melanie says: 

I took this photo the day before my son turned 10, and expression on his face is so 'him' that I decided to just hand journal a few tidbits about his personality in the journaling spots. I printed out my photo to 8/12 by 5 approximately, added the row of circles under the photo, and used the camera button as an embellishment in the 50mm 1.4 ( my favourite lens!) spot.

Melanie used the Vignette dots n spots three different ways on this page- a couple were used for journaling, one was used to layer a TreeHugger button and a couple were used for embellishment.  

Creative Team | Misting Tutorial with Emily

24 hours old by Emily Spahn 

Ormolu products used: 2-Day Hooray Dots n Spots, Write on paper chain, Blank Packaging Tags in white

Emily was so kind to take over the blog today with a mini misting tutorial while I wrap up some work on the new releases this week...so here she goes!

Step 1:
Gather your supplies: 
Mist 
Blank Tags 
Punched Shapes (I used circles)
A box or other "mist stopper"!  (The mist can be so messy!)

Step 2:
Place your blank tag in the "mist stopper" box and arrange your shapes on your tag.
Remember any portion of the tag that is covered up with be the original color.

Step 3:
Mist away!

Step 4:
Let the mist dry a minute or so and remove your shapes...

Voila!  A perfectly masked/misted tag!

Use them on your projects however you like. Use one by itself, or create a different tags and piece them together like i did on my layout!  Happy misting!

- Emily

Thank you so much Emily for sharing this beautiful layout and your misting tutorial.

I love how she used the masked portion of the misted tags for journaling spots and how she used all of the misted tags as her background. 

 

 

Canvas Tags

I mentioned the other day that I was going to try printing out the digital framed package tags on canvas and I did just that. My printer is super picky about accepting anything other than copy paper or photo paper but with a little bit of coaxing I was able to feed through a piece of sticky-back canvas. I purchased the 12"x12" sheets so I can trim them down and have left over scrap for other projects but they also have 8-1/2"x11" available. 

After cutting the tags out I used my fingernails to fray the edges a bit and punched a hole using my crop-a-dile.  

I am not sure how I will use the tags yet- I am thinking gift wrapping. Since the back is sticky I am thinking I will place a piece of coordinating fabric on the back or I could use it as a sticker. I think using some of the other tags as a canvas sticker will be pretty on a scrapbook layout. 

i did some scrapbooking...

(papers: cosmo cricket, bazzill; tags: hold your horses @ ormolu; journaling paper: hold your horses @ ormolu)

And I felt so much better. If I don't scrapbook- or do something creative for a while- I get seriously depressed. 

One of Poppytalk's posts last week had me on the search for a wood graining tool. Then I got home and realized I had no furniture to try this technique on...so paper it is!

After watching this video I got started. 

First, I decided my media had to be non-porous. As most scrapbooking surfaces are porous- I opted for a sheet of acrylic (or plastic...whatever you call it). 

Then I mixed up the paint. I used the same ratio found in the Martha Stewart video- only I used acrylic paints. 1 part acrylic paint, 1 part acrylic gloss, 2 parts water.

Next, I used a cosmetic wedge to apply the paint to the acrylic. I learned this handy little trick or using a cosmetic sponge for paint from Heidi Swapp. I was going through paint brushes like crazy (because Reiley does not clean them). These are a great thing to have on hand- along with brushes. 

 

Here is what the wood graining tool looks like- and the technique is just like the video (plus a little trial and error). Pull, twist and rock all together now! 

Here is what my first run looked like- not too bad really for a first. I did small sections (about 3-4 inches) at a time to make sure the paint did not dry out. 

Here is the result. I did an entire 12x12 acrylic sheet. I used a 5x12 inch piece on the layout at the beginning of this post. 

Then I used the remainder on this cute little pocket sized scrapbook. 

Although it still has to be filled with photos. 

(papers: sassafras, american crafts; buttons, tags: savoir faire @ ormolu)

typing on tags

I try to use a combination of handwriting, type and alphabets on any or all of my projects (just to mix it up a bit). 

A couple of years ago I picked up an old typewriter at the antique store that was only $10! I was so excited! It even looks cool! Only, it did not work quite right. I was determined to get it working though because I wanted to be able to use it. Sure, I could have used my typewriter from middle school (yes, I actually bought a typewriter to type up school reports) but it is not nearly as cool looking as this one. 

Anyway, I called around some computer repair places after realizing I could not get it to work and talked to a guy who said bring it in. So...i did! 

He was actually very interested in why I wanted it fixed. He also had a few old typewriters and so he knew how to get them working. A week and $40 later it was all clean, had new ribbon, and was working perfect! I told him I was going to use it for scrapbooking. I am not sure he understood that part. 

First, I picked out some of my tags I want to use. These are some of the savoir faire tags in my shop... 

Next I adhered them to a scrap piece of paper. I left some space around each one- did not even line them up in any way...I forgot to take a photo of that part so just imagine they are adhered to the paper... 

Slide your paper in and shift it around to type on each tag!