This week's Four Ways Friday is all about how to make a simple paper flower! I'll share with you how to make the flower and then show you four ways to use your new flower! :)
Let's begin with the video for how to make the flower! Caution - these can be addicting to make! :)
You can add these flowers to your cards and they add a lot of impact! Here I made a quick 3"x3" card and adhered the flower using glue. I added a greeting from Teeny Tiny Wishes using the modern label punch and also punched out a small circle from a piece of Very Vanilla card stock that I stamped using the Dot, Dot, Dot stamp.
You can also adhere these flowers to a recycled tin can! I made these flowers out of blank pages I tore out of an old book. I adhered them to the can using matte gel medium. I love that the flowers and the can were both made from recycled materials :) The greeting is a combination of stamped letters (Rough Edges Alphabet - retired) and words cut out of an old book.
What about a whole bouquet?! Here I glued the flowers to skewers and arranged them in a small pot. Some of the flowers were made from old book pages and the sprayed with ink mixed with water in a small spray bottle. The other flowers were made with designer series paper (Brights Pattern Stack). There is a styrofoam ball adhered to the bottom of the pot and the skewers were pushed into the styrofoam. I then scrunched up thin strips of Old Olive card stock and added it to the pot. The welcome banner was stamped using the Fabulous Phrases stamp set onto Very Vanilla card stock which I then glued onto the skewer! What a fun little gift or home decor item!
This easy flower does not have to stand alone :) The flower can act as the center of a larger flower! Here I used the Fun Flower Bigz die to create a multi-layer flower and placed the easy flower in the center. The banner was hand cut and stamped with a greeting from Sincere Salutations in Early Espresso ink. The Tulip embossing folder was used to create the frame around the card base. A few pearl jewels finish the look!
I hope you've enjoyed this week's Four Ways Friday! May you find joy in making these easy paper flowers and may you have a wonderful and creative weekend!!!!!
Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: Keep Asking "What If?"
I find that there are times when I am afraid to experiment and take chances in the craft room. I get so worried about how ugly my creation might turn out if I try something out of the ordinary! It is during these times that I realize I am too focused on the outcome as opposed to the process of creating. If we are not willing to take risks, it is difficult to grow and move our art (and our life) in new directions. One way to keep ourselves growing in our art is to continue asking the question "What if?" For instance, "What if I combined these two ink colors when they are still wet?," "What if I try to reheat my embossing powder and add glitter while it is all melty?", "What if I combine frost white shimmer paint with Bashful Blue ink?"
It is this last question that led to today's 3"x3" card! I was lamenting the fact that I didn't have shimmer paint in colors other than champagne and frost white and I asked myself "What if I combined the shimmer paint with my inks?" I took out a tiny little paint cup (you could do this on a palette or piece of freezer paper as well) and combined a bit of frost white shimmer paint with some Bashful Blue ink (about 3 drops of ink) and then stirred it with a wooden skewer. I then painted a piece of watercolor paper with the mixture. The result was a beautiful, shimmery piece of light blue paper that inspired this card! I tore a small piece of text out of an old book and adhered it to the Whisper White card with glue. I added the shimmery square on top of it. The sentiment is from Hodgepodge Happiness, stamped with Basic Black ink and then punched out with the 3/4" circle punch. I made the little flower from a scrap of the old book paper and adhered it to the card with glue as well. (I will try to make a video to share these quick and easy flowers with you). Allow yourself to keep asking, "What if?" It may lead you to new discoveries and awesome adventures in your art and life!!!! :)
It's time to Say Goodbye to retiring stamp sets and accessories in order to make room for all of the new products coming out in our new catalog in July! Click HERE to find out what items are retiring and to shop to get your favorites before they disappear by June 30th! A few things I'm really going to miss include our 1 1/4" striped ribbon in some yummy colors and a few of my favorite stamp sets including: Define Your Life, Friends 24-7, and Cheep Talk.
Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: Sometimes The Best Gold In The World Is Of The Feathered Variety!
I'm still dealing with this cold that has decided to visit my body for a bit. I spent my time today in the craft room instead of on the couch - it was a nice change of scene...especially when I looked out the window of the craft room and saw this:
It's rare for us to see such colorful birds in the city. We have our share of blue jays, but the goldfinches usually stay in the mountains. Today this gorgeous guy decided to brighten my day - it worked!!!! Sometimes the best gold in the world is of the feathered variety!!!!
I was reading a past issue of Somerset Studio (Jan/Feb 2006) and I came across an article about Tinnies by Lisa Kaus. I loved how she recycled tin cans and turned them into gorgeous knick-knack holders! I was inspired so I dug a can out of the recycling bin and got to work! I painted the can with 2 layers of latex house paint and then sanded it to let some of the silver shine through. I cut, scalloped and tore some old book pages and then colored them with ink and acrylic glaze. I adhered them to the can with gel medium and then added letters cut with the Big Shot and my Alphabet Simple Letters dies. The paper flower was made using various layers of the scallop circle punch. I hope you like it! I can't wait to dig more cans out of the recycling bin!!! :) Thanks for the inspiration Lisa!
Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: Create Through The Crud!
I woke up Sunday morning and was feeling fine and then, as the day progressed, the crud started to take over :( Ugh! Headache, runny nose, stuffy head and achy body - yuck! So I went to bed early and woke up feeling like I had been run over by a truck. I stayed on the couch and watched a lot of the Law & Order marathon and then, by the afternoon, I picked myself and my tea cup up and went into the craft room. I did a bit of cleaning and then decided to take my mind off my sickness and create! I hadn't used the Every Little Bit stamp set in forever, so I pulled it down and all of a sudden this pun came to my mind :) Sometimes it helps to create through the crud! :)
I used my stamp-a-ma-jig to stamp the penguin image repeatedly using jet black Staz-On ink. I then colored the beaks and feet with my Tangerine Tango marker. The stamp-a-ma-jig came in really handy again for the greeting! The "happy" is from Fabulous Phrases, the "Brrr" from the Defining Alphabet, and the "thday" from Curly Cute. I added a touch of Frost White shimmer paint for snow. I hope you like it!!!!
Today's Lesson From The Craft Room: Don't Throw Worms
I was talking to a friend the other day about a woman she has been friends with since she was small. That was over 30 years ago and the friendship has devolved to a place where it no longer feels supportive or nurturing. I asked my friend what had changed and she started to recount a tale from when she was young and this friend used to throw worms at her. This was 30 years ago and it was as real today as it ever was. My friend had asked the girl to not throw the worms and the girl didn't listen - she thought it was funny to watch my friend scream and cower at the worms. And here we are 30 years later and the memory is just as real and the nature of the friendship never really did change. Back then it was about not begin supportive and causing pain to someone close. Today it seems the same. The benefit is that now my friend is able to see this relationship for what it is and make choices about letting go of a relationship that is harmful to her. What is in our past has happened. Today is the present - the gift of new choices that support and treasure who we are. What choices can you make for yourself today?
Today's card is what I'm calling an exploration :) I have been playing with more art supplies and figuring out how to incorporate them into my cards. This card uses gesso, iridescent medium (champagne shimmer paint creates a similar effect), ink, stamps, smooch ink and more! The background has many layers - stamp, then gesso, then sponge with ink, then gesso, then dry brush, then spray, then stamp - you get the picture - a bunch of playing and experimentation. I guess in making the card I am living the life I've imagined - the life of an artist - free to explore and experiment as I try to express myself. I have a feeling more experimentation is on the way! :)
