Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Poinsettia Tutorial

Supplies:

Flower: Paper Shapers 3" & 2" daisy punches, glue, clear or red stickles, cranberry color wash (or some other dark red mist or ink), scissors, embossing mat (mouse pad), stylus, paintbrushes - one really fine for detail, white mini pearls, snow-tex or liquid applique, red cardstock.

Leaves: Sizzix holly & berries die, forest moss distress ink & blending tool, green cardstock.




1. Punch 2 - 3" and 1 - 2" daisy shapes.  Using scissors, start at the point of each petal & cut a curved piece out.  After cutting all of them, I flip one of the 3" over, so the petals are going the opposite way.








2. Using the fine paintbrush & the cranberry color wash or other dark red liquid/ink, draw veins down the center of each petal.  You can also use a dark red fine-tipped marker or even a black marker if you have no reds.








3.  Shape each petal by bringing up the sides a bit (just put your finger in the center of the petal and bend the sides of the petal around it).  Pinch the tip together and bend slightly to the side.










Better view of the shaped petals.








4.  Layer and glue.  The large 3" that you flipped over, put in the middle so the petals are going the opposite way.












5.  Put some red or clear stickles on each petal.  I liked the red better.  In order not to over due the stickles though, I put a small dot  on each petal, then spread it around with a paint brush for just a light coating of stickles.

6.  Using clear glue, add your small pearls to the center of the flower.

After stickling, you may need to reshape your petals a little by pinching the tips of the petals and bending.




7.  Add your snow-tex or liquid applique to the tips and/or sides of the petals.  I used liquid applique on this one.

If using liquid applique, be sure and let it dry before heating it to make it puff.

Tip: wait until the stickles (or ink on the leaves) is dry before adding the snow-tex/liquid applique...otherwise, the color bleeds through and you no longer have white "snow". 


Leaves
1. Using the sizzix die, cut out 3 leaves. 
2.  Emboss a line down the center with veins. 
3.  Flip them over, then ink lightly with forest moss distress ink to make the veins pop out.
4.  Bend and shape your leaves slightly.
5.  Glue onto the back of your poinsettia.
*You can also add some snow-tex or liquid applique to the leaves, but be sure and wait until the ink dries or the snow will turn yellow....and no one wants yellow snow on their leaves :)



Finished flowers with white pearls in the center and red stickles on the petals.  These are my favorite.







Side view of poinsettia. 








These were the first ones I made.  As you can probably see, I didn't wait for the stickles/ink to dry, so my snow isn't very pretty.  I also colored my pearls butterscotch with alcohol ink and used clear stickles on the petals.

I prefer the flowers with the red stickles and white pearls myself. 





Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you enjoy making these!!!

Stephanie

Tags & a Gift Box - thank goodness Christmas has me creating again!!!

I am pretty excited right now.  Usually, I'm a bah-humbug around the Christmas season...all the get-togethers and commercialization of the holidays totally bum me out!  But...this year...Christmas has me crafting again...and for that...I'm pretty excited!! 

I've made some tags and a gift box that I wanted to share.  I apologize for the blurry pics on the tags...that's what I get for trying to take them in a hurry...and it is too late to re-take them, since they are already packaged for a gift.

For the background, I inked with Fired Brick distress ink, then sprayed with Forever Red perfect pearls mist.  I then embossed with the Sizzix - Tim Holtz - Texture Fades - Alterations Collection - Embossing Folders - Snow Flurries and Snowman.  In the embossed snowflakes, I put ice stickles. 

I made the snowman from the Sizzix - Tim Holtz - Texture Fades - Alterations Collection - Embossing Folders - Snow Flurries and Snowman, just cut him out of the paper.  I colored his arms, hat, and nose, then put crackle accents on him.  I tied some ribbon around his neck.  Added the "wish" stickers to the bottom of him.

I stickled the swirls that are behind him also and added some snowflake stickers.  The ribbon at the bottom I got from JoAnn's, just scrunched it up and glued with hot glue.





I love snowmen...so this tag is a favorite of mine.  The background is inked with stormy sky and sprayed with perfect pearls forever blue mist.  The snowflake was a cut off of a Deja Views C-Thru 12 X 12 lace cut paper with glitter.  I embossed with white glitter embossing powder several times.  On the bottom, I used snow-tex that I purchased from Hobby Lobby.  The "snowmen melt your heart", snowman, and shovel are all stickers. 











The background was inked with pine needles distress ink and sprayed with forever green perfect pearls.  I embossed the trees with Sizzix - Tim Holtz- Texture Fades - Alterations Collection - Embossing Folders - Branch Tree and Tall Pines.  Added white liquid applique to parts of the trees and heated when dry to puff it up.  Stamped the snowflakes and embossed them.  Added a stamped sentiment and some decorations on the bottom.  The bird is a stamp that I cut out and applied with pop dots.




On this one, the background was inked with Fired brick distress ink and sprayed with Forever red perfect pearls mist.  Added snow-tex to the bottom of the tag.  The nativity scene is an image from Thomas Kinkade that I printed out and adhered.  I cut the star on my silhouette, then used ice stickles on it.  Put the flower together with some home-made glittered vines.  The "Christmas Miracle" is a clear sticker.








Front View


I absolutely love how this gift box turned out.  I absolutely dreaded going into my craft room and working on it, because I just wasn't feeling the muse...but once I started, it took about an hour to complete and I love it.  I made the flower myself using Natasha's Curly Flower Tutorial.  This was my first time making this flower and I love how it turned out.  This would make a perfect bow for a present.  I put some paper underneath it folded up to give it some height on my box.

I covered the box with paper.  I love these boxes.  They are at Walmart in the Christmas section, and it's only $3 for a set of 5.  There are all kinds of shapes and sizes to choose from too.  Around the top of the box I put some snow-tex mostly to cover up the seam in the paper.


Left Side

I took some white ribbon, heated it up to get it to shape and shrink a bit, then hot glued it to the back of the box.  Took some red beads and draped them around the box.  Added the red, white, and green glittered sprigs and decorations that I have purchased from Walmart and Hobby Lobby. 

I've got a red bird glued next to the flower.  The green flower in the back is my own delicate rose flower, that I just realized I didn't have a tutorial on, so I will get one made. 

I glued a wooden Christmas tree on one side of the box, and a plastic candy piece on the other.  Added some white feathers to fill up the empty spaces.  





Right Side

Top View
Front View (again)

Thanks to all of you for checking out my blog and my creations!  Now, I'm going to fight blogger to put up a poinsettia flower tutorial! 

I hope you all have a wonderful day and Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow!!!

Stephanie

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

My Memories Software winner announced

As promised (but almost forgotten) the winner of the contest for the My Memories Software Suite is comment #5, which is Whitney, who wrote: "This looks GREAT!!! Cute title, and yet so true! I love all the kits how do I choose?? I think the "It happened this year" kit is my favorite."

Congrats Whitney!!  Send me an email to claim your software!!

Thanks for playing,
Stephanie

Monday, November 7, 2011

Commenting

FYI:

I've been having problems commenting on other's blogs.  Finally, I got tired of it because I see some really great posts that I would love to comment on, but always get this error saying I don't have permission. 

I went to Blogger's help area and saw that there is a problem with commenting on posts when the comment section is embedded underneath the post.  For some reason though, if you have a pop-up comment form, there is no problem.

I'm asking everyone that sees this, to please change their comment options to the pop-up comment style, so that we can post comments.  I know I cannot possibly be the only one with this problem!!

My 1st Digi Layout & a contest for FREE My Memories Digital Software

I am pretty excited about the opportunity I have been given to try out the My Memories software and host a give-away for one blessed person to win their very own My Memories digital scrapbooking software.

After downloading the software, the first thing I did was check out their store for what I could get to go with it.  Oh my gosh, there are some very talented people creating some really awesome kits!!  I was excited to go through the free section and get so many goodies, and it was so hard to be selective when it came time to choose the ones I wanted to purchase.  My next step is to check out all the tutorials to learn how to digi scrap a lot better, but I just couldn't wait to try my first layout!

This is my daughter, Shelby and her boyfriend.  They make such a cute couple!  I know I have a lot to learn with shadows and layering, but for my first attempt, I think I did an OK job.  All of the stuff used on this layout was from the free section of the My Memories site


Now, for the give-away.  One person will be randomly selected to win a free copy of the My Memories Digital Scrapbook Suite.  To enter the drawing, just go to their site and find your favorite digital paper pack, then comment on my blog telling me which one you have chosen.  I will end this contest one week from today, and on Tuesday, November 15, I will announce the winner.

This digital scrapbooking software is so easy to use and navigate!  I strongly recommend it, especially if you are like me and have never digi scrapped before!!

Thanks for playing!

Stephanie