Compendium of Curiosities Challenge #29

Compendium of Curiosities Challenge #29 over at StudioL3 was weathered wood grunge, instructions are found on page 50.  


As I may have mentioned once or twice I am in "wedding mode" so I decided to use this weeks challenge and make something for the wedding.  At the reception sitting on the gift table there will be (vintage style) birdcage to keep cards safe.  Just in case anyone is confused, I made this sign to hang on the birdcage.  

I did make one discovery - do NOT glue two layers of grunge board together and then try running it through the Big Shot in an embossing folder. . . The Big Shot did not like it at all and now it makes funny noises and the embossing folder got a little more distressed.   The Big Shot still works, albeit noisy.  I haven't tried the embossing folder yey to see if it still works.  Of course if your goal is to get a new die cut machine (say maybe a Vagabond) then by all means try the double grunge board technique, it may be just the ticket!


Be sure to stop by Studio L3 where the AWESOME Linda Ledbetter will have a new challenge posted.


Have a fabulous week!


Linda

Addendum to Challenge 28 post

The awesome Kate sent a picture of the card I created using the fragment I made for A Compendium of Curiosities Challenge 28.

Challenge 28 from "A Compendium of Curiosity"

Hi!  This week Challenge 28 from A Compendium of Curiosity challenge over at StudioL3 was found on page 57, Colorful Layered Fragments.   Unlike some of the more recent challenges I actually started working on it on Monday, the day the challenge was posted!  Go me!

I created 2 pieces, the smaller one (the fish) for my sample book and the large one (butterfly) for a "TBD" later project.

Turns out late Thursday night (as in I was already in bed and about to fall asleep) I realized I had not made my friend (and boss), SJ, a card for her birthday which was Friday.  So the "TBD" later project took shape.   Friday morning I quickly threw some elements together including the large fragment with the butterfly.  In my rush to get things done before I left for work, I didn't even think about taking a picture of the completed card.


Thanks to my friends  we are making great strides on the wedding invites!  Teresita came over yesterday (Saturday) and helped embossing elephants on the invitations, inking the edges and started to assemble the mats.  SJ came over today (Sunday) and we finished assembling the invitation mats & invite.  We worked on the bands that will go around the entire "packet".   My goal is to have them in the mail by February 1 and  I think we will make it with time to spare, well if I get all the addresses the goal will be met!  In case any of you are wondering why the bride isn't working on the invitations it's because she is in the Air Force Reserves and is away at training until the end of February.   And her bride's maids are scattered from Maryland to Hawaii and Los Angeles to Seattle, so with the help of my AWESOME, FABULOUS, and WONDERFUL friends we are getting the invitations done.

What kind of paper cutter do you use?  What do you like about it?  Is there anything you don't like about it?

Hope you have a fantastic week!

Linda

CCC # 27 and wedding update

My youngest daughter is getting married on April 1.  I am making her invitations.  For the last week or two I have been finalizing the design and ordering supplies.  I decided to create the background for the invitations myself.  I came by that decision quite by accident.


I will be back to edit this post . . . gotta get the CCC challenge posted.  There is a tie between this week's challenge, well at least my project for the challenge and the wedding stuff I have been working on.


For challenge 27 Linda at StudioL3 has us turn to page 60 in our Compendium of Curiosities book for Distress Misting Masks.  I created my own mask using "leftovers" from some flowers I made using "tattered florals" die.  I carefully cut around the edge to create the mask.   

So here's my challenge project:

(Please note, the color is MUCH better in person than in this photo.  I will try to get a better picture).

I will be back later to finish this post.

I'm baaccccccccccccck! (and I "talked" a lot! lol)

Like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I made the decision to make the background quite by accident.  The original plan had the invitation printed on vellum then embossed. (Did you know if you print on vellum using an inkjet printer and you cover it with embossing powder as soon as it comes out of the printer, then heat with a heat gun you get embossed printing?  It looks fabulous!)  

I made a prototype of the invitation but didn't have any light blue vellum, so I printed the invite on plain copy paper and proceeded with the rest of the invite.  I didn't like the plain white paper so I took a blending tool and added a bit of tumbled glass to make it easier to "pretend" it was light blue vellum.  I went to my favorite store (Stampers' Corner [SC]) to show them the prototype and see if they could get what I was looking for.  They brought out the catalogs of specialty  paper.  I liked the light blue vellum, but couldn't find another blue to go with it.  (The wedding colors are light blue and white.) Amber & Brenda (two of the awesome ladies who work at SC) and I were throwing out ideas when one of them said they liked the background the way it was with the tumbled glass, the other quickly agreed.  I thought about it, then we tried matching the background paper I had created to other blues!  EUREKA! We found the right accent blue!  

All I can say is THANK YOU to everyone at SC, especially Amber for all her patience in working with me to get the invitation supplies and all the times I changed my mind (and there were lots of changes).  I am sure she was VERY glad when I finally went in to pay because then I couldn't change my mind, well I guess I could, it'd just cost me.  

 Sorry, I digressed a bit from the background.  Here is a peek at the background.  I used a blending tool with "tumbled glass" distress ink then spritzed with Perfect Pearl Mist in Perfect Pearl.

Here's a close-up you can kinda see the Perfect Pearl Mist.

The only reason I am mentioned the background for the wedding invites in this post is because my project for week 27 started with a sheet just like the one above.  

I was in the mood for flowers and thought this would make a great background and I had a "few" laying around.  Maybe it was the cold foggy day were were experiencing and I wanted to counteract it or maybe it was because I am looking forward to my first trip EVER to Hawaii next month but I wanted something bright.  First  I went with Mustard Seed Distress Ink and Sunflower Sparkle Perfect Pearls.

But that wasn't quite what I was looking for.  So then I tried blending some Spiced  Marmalade and Rusty Hinge Distress ink into the background then spritzed with some Fade Jeans Distress Ink and True Blue Sparkle Perfect Pearls.  Ahhh, much better (and they really do look much better in person than these photos).  I manged to get the backgrounds completed on Thursday or Friday.

I have some vintage style Hawaiian stamps I wanted use, but alas they are in a safe place so I had to come up with plan B.  Yesterday I devised plan B - incorporate the flowers I used as masks into the card.  I inked the flowers a bit more and set them aside to dry.  Then I got involved in wedding stuff and didn't get back to them.

Today (Sunday) SJ came over to help with the invites.  I needed some more paper for the background so we started the day with a field trip. . .only we were there an hour before SC opened.  Luckily  I live VERY close to the SC.  Today we worked on the RSVP and some background paper.  The RSVPs were prined so we just had to cut them to size and emboss a custom design on each one.  I had an idea for a stamp and the WONDERFUL, AWESOME Kate from KS Designs created the digital image, then SC sent the design off and yesterday I received a rubber stamp!    (My daughter LOVES elephants and the wedding theme is "enchanted jungle".)

Isn't the stamp adorable?

The color of the printed info on the wedding stationary is very similar to Faded Jeans Distress Ink.  I had planned to use FJ but had not tested to see which embossing powder I would use with it.  So SJ & I tried 3 different ep with FJ, but it wasn't embossing "right".  We tried Tumble Glass, Broken China, Chipped Sapphire and Stormy Sky but the Distress Ink did not seem to be "holding" any of the embossing powder.  Then I tried Staz-on Ultra Marine, that held the ep, but was really dark and from a distance looked almost black.   Another field trip.  (Like I said, it's a good thing SC is soooo close to my house! lol).   Carol helped us and then Nellie helped us and after much conferring we decided to try Staz-on Hydrangea Blue.  We got home and gave it a try and it was PERFECT.  

I was quite surprised that the Distress Inks were not working as I usually use Distress Ink when I emboss.  The only thing we could come up with is somehow the Perfect Pearl Mist "interfered" with the ink and it being able to hold the embossing powders.  Have you ever had a problem with Distress Ink not holding embossing powder?

Guess I've rambled enough for one post, so I will say bye for now.  I wish a FABULOUS week and hope you get time to do what you want!

Linda

CCC #26 and some rambling

I am not sure how time flies by so quickly but days seem to go by faster than I can snap my fingers!  It seems like I was just posting CCC  #25 and here it is almost at the end of CCC #26!  

Made it with a minute to spare!  I really need to work on not cutting it quite so close.  This time it wasn't because I forgot to create something, I started working a project yesterday but I've been fighting a cold for 2 weeks now not really motivate to do much.  When I did try to post tonight, I ran into some technical difficulties.   But all is good now!

The bookplate from one of Tim's grungeboard packs was altered using the instructions on page 45 of Compendium of Curiosities.   The "Only U" was created & printed using PrintMaster 16. I went over "only" with a black Sakura Glaze pen.  The background paper is from Tim's Lost & Found Stack.  

Be sure to check Linda's blog every Monday for a new challenge, there are still about 9 to go!  

In other ramblings. . . 

What little time I have spent crafting these last couple of weeks has been mostly devoted to designing my daughter's wedding invitations.  I think I finally came up with a design I like.  Just have to get final approval from the bride & groom then for the next couple of weeks I will be creating the invitations!  I am some really AWESOME friends who have volunteered to help me prepare the invites and any other items we need created.   If you are wondering why the bride, the groom or the attendants are not helping is because they are scattered across the US - literally - from Maryland to Hawaii and from Seattle to Los Angeles.  

A couple weeks ago, Sherry had a crossword puzzle to solve.  It was all about the group Earth Wind and Fire, a group she LOVES.  I know who they are and remember them from "back in the day" but didn't know a whole lot about them.  I decided I was up for the challenge.  So I did some research and learned a thing or two along the way.  Did you know an African thumb piano is called a Kalimba? Neither did I.   I got some help from a couple of co-workers (thanks Kate & Derek!) and was able to fill in all the blanks!  I sent a note off to Sherry with my answers.  She responded that I was the first one with all the correct answers!  Yippee, I won!  

My prize arrived last Thursday in a yummy looking box.  I had dashed home from work before heading off to the dentist.  When I saw the package I told myself to wait until I got back to open it.  Yeah, right who was I kidding. . .I was NOT going to wait, so I tore into it and found yumminess was definitely packed inside!

I pulled ribbon after ribbon out of the box and then found some more goodies

and finally the last thing I found!

But "OH NO!  I thought, even though a "Tiny Attacher" is on my 'wish list' I don't have one" What I am going to do with a box of refills?"  "But wait! I received a couple of gift cards for Stampers' Corner!"  I hurried off to the dentist and since I had to literally drive right passed Stampers' Corner to get home (pur house, Stampers' Corner and the dentist are all on the same street) AND one of those gift cards happened to be in my pocket,  I made a little detour into the store. And now I am the proud owner of a new 

THANK YOU Sherry for the awesome prize pack and for reminding me I wanted a Tiny Attacher!

Have a fabulous week!

Once again under the wire - CCC #25

Once again I am making just under the wire. . .

Here's my entry for Compendium of Curiosities Challenge 25 going on at StudioL3.  Instructions can be found on page 34 of the Compendium of Curiosities! 

Same technique, different paper and what a difference it made!!


Hope 2011 has started out fabulous for you!


Edit -Thankfully everything came together!  From the time I realized tonight was the deadline for Challenge 25 to the time I created the 2 "pieces" and finished posting - 24 minutes!  Good thing I work well under pressure!  And THANK YOU LINDA (LEDBETTER) for having a quick and easy challenge this time!

Happy New Year!

Wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous 2011!