~ photo heavy ~
Howdy, and welcome to my little piece of blog-land. I hope your new year has gotten off to a roaring start! Me, I've been doing what I always do: crafting, baking, running, and chores. So, not much of a change. But, I am ok with that.
For my holiday break I got the Flu, and boy was that awful! I was in bed for a week, and couldn't get the energy to do much of anything productive. Then, it was back to work, back to marathon training, back to life. I have been working on a few special orders: cupcakes, and crafts. Let's just admit it, those are my two favorite things!
I stumbled upon this incredible paper craft challenge site while following a favorite paper crafter overseas. And I am happy I did! The folks over @
Paper Story have a super talented group of designers who I am sure will inspire you! This challenge site is from Russia, but they have a 'translate' button, so it is super easy to play along! Their current challenge is called:
Olivier. It is a 'recipe-based' challenge. They have given you mandatory elements, just like in a recipe, but with an option to switch one 'ingredient' with something else, just like a recipe. How super fun is that? Here is their recipe: Paper, Flowers, Lace, Beads (brads, buttons, chips, dots, sparkles), Chip (chipboard), Tape (cord/braid ok), and Machine Line.
My next stop:
As You See It. This challenge site has some very creative challenges, and their design team has a range of styles, so no matter yours, you will be inspired. Their current challenge is a sketch. (Love these)
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I rotated this sketch 90 degrees left, and then mirrored it |
And my final stop was
Word Art Wednesday. I just can't brag about this site enough. The design team is super talented, the write-up is inspirational, and the site is just plain NICE! Their current challenge is:
Anything Goes & Family Friendly. Who wouldn't want to play along?
and here is what I made:
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Paper: Sweet Peppermint, Flower: manufactured, Lace: two kinds, Beads: button and sequins, Chip: chipboard mittens, Tape: thin silver cord, and Machine Line: machine sewing on both panels. |
another view:
Recipe: This gift card holder was made with pattern paper from the Sweet Peppermint holiday collection by Prima Marketing. The base of the 'card' is crumb cake card stock by Stampin' Up! I just love the heavy weight of it. The matt is real red card stock by Stampin' Up!, as well.
I used the tiny green dot pattern paper for the panels. I didn't want any distractions from the focus: Santa! I machine stitched this pattern paper to the red matt.
I then layered 4 different pattern papers from the Sweet Peppermint collection: the red stripe, the multi-check, the snowflake, and the multi-colored dot. I did matt the snowflake pattern paper with crumb cake card stock, to give the layered rectangles a 'base'. The sentiment/journaling card is adhered to the front with foam tape. I also added a file tab, from the Sweet Peppermint collection, to the side of the Santa journalling card.
I wrapped two different lace trims around the top portion. I just love the softness this brought to my 'card'. I tied a double bow with one of the lace trims.
The flower and leaves are both from Prima Marketing, as well, and yes, the same collection: Sweet Peppermint. I just love the contrast between this mint color and the reds.
I added a chipboard piece from the same collection. I thought mittens were a nice touch. And the silver outline adds a nice sparkle!
I added some silver sequins to mimic the sparkle from the glitter on the flower and the silver on the chipboard. I added an aqua vintage button to the lower right corner of the journalling card. I thought it matched the flower beautifully, and tied it with some slim silver cord.
here is what the 'card' looks like opened:
I love making these 'packaged' gift card holders, because it makes gift giving super easy. Now, when you purchase your gift cards from the store, you no longer have to rip them open, to give the card. Just slide the whole thing, right into the pouch, and viola! I make a lot of these for my Holiday Craft Fairs, and folks seem to really enjoy them. {smile} My crafts are 'one-of-a-kind', in that I do NOT mass produce. It makes each item special. Now, I do make similar, but not match-matchy, carbon copies.
Thank you for stopping by. I hope that you have been inspired to play along with any/all of these challenge sites. Enjoy your weekend, and take care!