Fantabulous Friday Freebie: Itty Bitty Photo Turns

Phew! What a week! Sometimes I wonder why I persist in biting off more than I can chew. But I guess I managed to get a lot done, so really, it's not so bad, after all. One thing I've discovered? I'm not used to sitting at a desk all day long anymore. I suppose that's a good thing, but boy is my back sore! I'm thinking a nice long sleep in is in order for tomorrow morning.

So, with that said, I'm going to keep is short and sweet today. It's Freebie time!

Today I'm sharing my die-cut design: Itty Bitty Photo Turns

I love my Itty Bitty files. They are taking quite a bit of time to get uploaded into the store, though! I thought maybe you'd enjoy having one today. This one goes great with those vintage labels we were talking about earlier this week!

Boring but Important Legal Stuff: My terms of use are included in each zipped download. If you have any questions about how you may use this file, please read it. By clicking to download the file, you are agreeing to abide by the terms. If you'd like to share it, please don't. Rather, send your friends a link to this blog post. Once it's no longer available as a freebie, you might be tempted to share it with someone. Please don't! 'Nuf said!

This download will be available for only 24 hours!

Sorry!  This download has expired!  Looking for more Sam & Hailey freebies?  Check out the latest edition of the VDBC Newsletter!

Here's an example of this file. I used it to adorn one of the pages of the Perpetual Calendar I made a while back. These are little photo turns I cut from grungeboard and then painted. They look so cute with those jewel brads! Seeing this picture made me thing of the old blog post where I had all the details on this project. I decided to re-post it on the new blog. Just scroll down to the previous post to check it out!

Did you know that the VDBC Anniversary Party is coming up? There's going to be all sorts of fun starting in just a couple of weeks. I'm going to be hosting at least 3 or 4 challenges here on my blog and in the forum. You know you want to join in!


Time to get crafty, people!

Repost from 2.4.09 - Perpetual Calendar

This is a repost of my February 4th, 2009 blog post on my old blog.  I want to save some of my more important blog posts before the old blog goes away.  Hey, I think it's good enough to share twice!

I finished up my Perpetual Calendar yesterday! I'm so excited about it! I have tons of pictures to share, so be prepared! Before I post all the pictures, let me explain how it works. The calendar is divided into sections... imagine a rectangular page that you've sliced into strips. The first section, the largest piece, is for the Month. There are 12 Month pages, obviously. The other three sections are the same size. The next section is for the day of the week and there are seven of these... Sunday - Saturday. The last two sections are the date numbers. The first date section contains only the numbers 1-3 and a blank for the first nine days of the month. The second date section is the last section of the calendar and contain numbers 1-9 with a zero at the end. Each day you flip up the next number and day of the week! There is a front and back cover as well, with ribbons that I used to tie the covers into a little A-Frame stand.

What I love about this project?

1) I scrapped a whole years worth of photos which I haven't done in ages.
2) I designed and cut almost every decorative element myself.
3) I used some of my favorite products.
4) Everything I used was already in my stash... scary, I know!
5) I actually accomplished something tangible!
6) I photographed each part before I assembled it.  Then I printed the pages again on photo paper and made copies of the calendar for the Grandparents and for Daddy's desk at work!  Awesome Christmas Gift!

Without further ado.... here's my calendar entitled "A year with Sam & Hailey!" Click on any image to see a larger version.

Supply notes:
All numbers from my file "Itty Bitty Funky Numbers"
Weekday abbreviations and letters from my file "Itty Bitty Weekdays"
Months from my file "Itty Bitty Months"
All frames from my "Background Cuts" line of files.
All paper from BasicGrey
All cardstock from Bazzill Basics
All flowers from Prima
All other files and supplies as noted below

Brad: SEI; File: Itty Bitty Swirls

Ribbon: All My Memories

Here are close up photos of the Months pages.  I love that they are mini scrabook pages!

The months:

Snowflake from Itty Bitty Snowflakes

Heart with Wings from Itty Bitty Sweetheart

Flower from Itty Bitty Flowers, brad from SEI

Boot from Itty Bitty Cowboy

Flower garland from Itty Bitty Fairy, brads from Making Memories

Photo Turns from Itty Bitty Photo Turns, brads from Making Memories

Anchor from Itty Bitty Pirate, brad from Hot Off the Press

Apple from Itty Bitty Fruit

Leaves from Itty Bitty Autumn Leaves

Crown from Itty Bitty Princess; Star from Itty Bitty Cowboy; Jewel Flower from Heidi Swapp

Ribbon slide from Itty Bitty Buckles, Ribbon from All My Memories

Gingerbread boy from Itty Bitty Christmas Sweets, Jewels from Heidi Swapp

Here are close-ups of the other tabs! Remember you can click on any image for a closer look.

The days of the week:

Jewels: Heidi Swapp; File: Insides of Background Cuts collection files.

Brad: SEI; File: Insides of Background Cuts collection files

File: Insides of Background Cuts collection files

The first digit of the date:

Brad: SEI; Jewel: Heidi Swapp; Files: Insides of Background Cuts collection files, Itty Bitty Swirls

Brads: Making Memories; Ribbon: All My Memories; Ribbon Sliders: Colorbok; File: Itty Bitty Fairy

The second digit of the date:

Jewels: Heidi Swapp; Brads: Colorbok, Hot Off The Press; Fabric Flower Stickers: SEI; Chipboard and Acrylic Flowers: Heidi Swapp; File: Itty Bitty Charms

Brads: Colorbok, SEI; Eyelets: Making Memories; Fabric Flower and Tab: SEI; Ribbon: All My Memories; File: Itty Bitty Bookplates

Ribbon Slider Brad: Bazzill; Brads: Hot Off The Press; Ribbon: All My Memories; Jewel: Heidi Swapp; Metal Tab: Colorbok

Chipboard and Acrylic Hearts: Heidi Swapp; Spiral Clip: Colorbok; Brads: Hot Off The Press; Metal Tab: Colorbok; File: Itty Bitty Bookplates

I'm hoping this will inspire someone else out there to do something different!!

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Thanks for playing!

Color Swatch Thursday: Old Glass

This week has been a little bit busy with all the changes I've been making to get my designs uploaded to their new home.  I've been updating everything with new SVG and MTC files as well as redoing the images.  Phew!  It's a lot of work!

Samantha has been busy, too.  She really takes after her mom sometimes.  Her homework assignment for this week is a big project.  She's excited not to have regular homework and absolutely loves crafty projects.  The project is on Ancient Greece and/or the Olympics.  Sam decided to make a model of an ancient Greek theater.  She loooooves dioramas.  It's the crafty in her.  She spent most of last Saturday researching and creating it.  Then every day after school she has refined and added more details.  She also decided to make a Powerpoint presentation to go along with it.  Gotta love having a gifted child who can't help herself.  The hardest part for me is allowing her to do it herself.  I'm just too much of a perfectionist. But I know she needs to do it herself and not be pressured by me to be perfect. 

This totally brought back memories for me of a project I did in school.  Not sure what grade it was, probably 6th or 7th grade.  I attempted to make a model of Macchu Picchu out of clay.  I'm sure it was pretty good, looking back on it now.  I imagine that I got a decent grade on it.  But at the time, I felt like it was a horrible failure because there was so much detail I couldn't possibly fit in.  Because it didn't look {exactly} like the real Macchu Picchu I knew it wasn't any good.  Silly girl I was.  I worry about my own perfectionism becoming too much pressure on Sam.  So, I've just bitten my tongue on a lot of projects and tried to give constructive advice and not criticism.  It's just so hard!

So, speaking Ancient Greece and old stuff in general.  It's time to share a little color swatch with you!

Today's color swatch is inspired by:  Old Glass

You can download an Adobe Swatch Exchange File for this color scheme from Adobe Kuler.

I love the look of old glass.  Even if it's not old just old-looking like some of these are.  The green and clear vases aren't old, but just look like it.  I enjoy them anyway.  The mason jar is one of my collection.  I accidentally dropped something on this one while rooting around in my canning cabinet the other day.  It chipped the rim of the jar so it's not useable for canning anymore.  Bummer!  I guess it's held it's last quart of applesauce.  Now it can just look cool.  They don't make them round anymore like this one is, maybe that's why I like it so much.  It's unique.  And it's the only one I have with the "Drey" brand name on it.  Double unique!  So, even though it's chipped, it's a keeper. 

The colors of the glass are restful to my eye.  Cool blues with a little punch of soft green.  So peaceful!

Time to get crafty, people!

Project Wednesday: Faux-Glass Glitter Photo Board

Last year I was to take a trip with some friends and colleagues to the CHA {Craft & Hobby Association} Winter Convention.  It was sooooo much fun!  I was wishing I could have gone again this year.  It just wasn't in the cards.  Next year probably not looking that good either.  Sigh... I'll always have Anaheim 2010, though. 

One of my favorite things about going to CHA {aside from getting my picture taken with Tim Holtz and winning a Wacom Bamboo Touch Tablet and a Cricut} was all the Make-N-Take projects that so many of the booths were offering.  I came home just brimming with ideas and inspiration! One of the booths I really enjoyed was the Product Performers booth.  Their guest designer was Donna Salazar, a mixed media artist that I really enjoy.  One of the days we did these cute little photo boards and learned how to make her signature paper flowers.  If you haven't learned how to do those, you can check out her blog.  They are easy and very pretty! 

The project supplies included a gorgeous crushed glass glitter.  Pretty to look at, not pretty to work with as I quickly found out the hard way.  I think of crushed glass glitter like I do many of the desert plants that grow around our house.  Pretty to look at, but containing thousands of tiny barbs ready to embed themselves in your skin at a moments notice.  As a mom with young children, this is probably not a product I want hanging around the house.  I can imagine that if ingested, it wouldn't be very nice.  And, as the owner of a tiny dog that is part goat, I really don't want to make a lot of projects using it.  One might argue that regular glitter probably isn't all that good for a dog to eat either, but neither are all the numerous Barbie Doll hands and feet he's ingested over the past year and that's not slowed him down.

I've never forgotten that I really loved how crushed glass glitter looked.  Then I started thinking, "There's got to be something I can use to mimic this look!"  I think I've come up with a pretty good substitute.  Sparkly, chunky, pretty, but not ouchy.  Kid and dog friendly.  And so without further ado...

Today's project is ... Faux-Glass Glitter Photo Board 

First, I suppose you'll need the recipe to make your own Faux Glass Glitter.  Here it is:

Faux-Glass Glitter

Supplies:

1 bottle regular glitter

1 bottle superfine glitter

1 bottle micro beads

1 package tiny rocaille beads

1 pint mason jar with a screw top lid

Instructions:

Pour all above ingredients into the mason jar.  Close the lid and shake, shake, shake!

That's it!  The ratios really don't matter.  If you want it chunkier add more of the rocaille beads.  I got all my supplies at Michael's and used the Martha Stewart brand except for the rocaille beads.  The nice thing about the MS brand is you can pretty much do any color you want as they have coordinating supplies in lots of colors.  I made mine clear to mimic the look of the clear glass glitter. 

Now, just in case you don't read through the directions for the photo boards I have to clue you into a little secret.  The secret to making this look really three dimensional and not just lie there on your project like dust on one of my bookshelves, is to use something like Diamond Glaze or some other really shiny, thick adhesive.  It will definitely add to the shine and the depth of your project.  Okay, continue on with the project, why don't ya?

Photo Board

Supplies:
6"x6" Board - you can use heavy chipboard, pressed board, wood, canvas, etc.
Paper
Mounting glue
Twine or ribbon
3" Paper or silk flower
Glaze glue or something similar (I used Aleene's Paper Glaze)
Faux-Glass Glitter (recipe above)
Quote or saying (I printed mine on vellum)
Wallet sized photo

Instructions:

1. Cover your board with patterned paper using the mounting glue.  Allow to dry.
2. Punch or drill holes in the top corners of your board and thread ribbon or twine through the holes for hanging.
3. Adhere a flower {make your own if you'd like!} in the upper left corner.
4. Glop a little of the glaze glue around the corners of the board. 
5. Dribble glaze around the edges of the flower. 
6. Dump a bunch of Faux-Glass Glitter onto the glaze, shake off the excess.
7. Allow the glaze to dry completely.
8. Adhere a quote or title onto the bottom of the board.
9. Tuck your photo behind the quote and/or flower.
10. Hang on your wall to enjoy!

I made my flower on the board using layers of decorative paper, old sheet music and tissue paper.  I smooshed them up and sprayed them with some glitter spray, following the Donna Salazar method mentioned above.  Then I added a large craft gem to the center.  It was soooo easy.  You could also make some nifty paper rosettes for this project.  Come on, you know you love those! 

If you make any projects using these ideas, feel free to post them on your blog and include a link in the comments section below.

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Time to get crafty, people!

Trendwatch Tuesday: Antique Labels

How-de-do, crafty neighbors!  I'm aiming for a digression free blog post today.  It would be a miracle, wouldn't it?  Let's get right to it.  I've been scouring the net for hot trends for you.  Here's one I think you'll like.  {As if you've disliked all the previous ones?}

Today's trend is... Antique Labels

There are a serious lot of antique inspired labels out there.  It seems like every new collection I've seen has a set of labels of some sort included either in the paper, the die-cut sheets, or the stickers.  I think it's a trend with staying power.

My current favorites?  You've gotta check out the Apothecary collection from Echo Park papers.  Ah-Maze-Ing!  Look at those awesome labels!

Halloween is coming and these have gotta be coming to my house.  I might actually make something out of them rather than just stare lovingly at them.  It's so hard to cut into the papers and use the stickers I love the most. 

Got a couple more for you, so stick around.  Look at this printed die-cut cardstock label from Little Yellow Bicycle.  It's part label, part frame, part title, and all kinds off wonderful.

I really really heart this mini book in the shape of an Antique Label from Theresa Collins:

Lastly, I love the vintage inspired label die cut shapes from the Jillibean Soup.  It seems like they've got coordinating ones for just about every one of their collections. These ones are the Spotted Owl Pea Pods Gorgeosity!

So, what can you do with your cutter to make vintage inspired lables?  Just about anything!   You can cut them in lots of different materials.  They are the perfect little frames on just about any project.  Why not cut them from vinyl to label your kitchen canisters?
Hey, so how was that for digression-free??

Time to get crafty, people!

The Moving Sale - Last Day!

It's the last day for the Moving Sale!  That's right, 50% off everything ends tonight at Midnight Central Time! If you didn't hear about it on Friday, I'm moving where I sell my files.  Yup, you heard it!

I'm heading over to The MORE team at Visual Designs By Chris.  I couldn't be happier about it!  Not everything is going to make it up into my new catalog at VDBC right away, so today's the last day to snap up anything you've had your eye on for a while before it shows up in the new store.  And you can get it at 50% off, too!  Hip Hip Hooray!  Also, to celebrate, there's a freebie to download!  Just scroll down to the previous post.

So, last Monday, the girls were off school for a teacher development day.  I asked one of Samantha's teachers if it involved back massages and pedicures.  But she said no, it was a long boring training day.  Blech, I think they should have gone with the massages.  Or at least a pedicure.  Is that too much to ask for the people that are responsible for my kids each day?  I think not.  Hmm... now I know what to give them for Christmas, I guess.

Our day last Monday was fun but not too crazy.  Just the way we like it.  The girls and I went out to breakfast, which usually consists of the girls eating three bites of pancake, two whole sausages and nothing else.  Which is where I come in, trying not to finish their food but hating it to go to waste.  I did eat Hailey's hashbrowns though.  I think there's a law against throwing hashbrowns away.  And I always obey the law. 

After breakfast I took the girls to Target to go shopping.  I finally gave them their chore allowance from the past 6 weeks.  Hey, at least I kept track, right?  At a whopping $.05 a chore, it takes a while for it to add up.  They finally each had $5 which had suddenly grown too hot to hold on to any longer.  So, we went off to find some dog food.  And by dog food, I mean small toys that the girls will leave on the floor and the dog will then chew to bits.  This usually ends in a happy dog, but a sad child, or two.  I try to explain this to them regularly without much success.  On the bright side, it keeps the toy bins from getting too full. 

I was also looking for new shoes for me.  Samantha pointed out to me on Sunday that my black church shoes were getting kind of old looking.  And rightly so, since I bought them about the same time she was born.  So, I figured it might be time for a new pair of shoes.  Samantha was desperate for me to get a pair of heels.  I haven't worn heels since... well, since about the time Samantha was born.  Alas, I ended up buying no shoes at all.  They only had ridiculously high heels, {and by ridiculously high I mean higher than an inch} or uncomfortable flats with no arch support.  I wish they made sneakers that looked like dress shoes. 

After the Target excursion we went through the McD's drive through for ice cream cones.  Which of course ended up being mostly eaten by me.  I wish they still had kiddie cones.  My girls can never finish a whole regular cone.  That was about as much excitement as the day afforded.  Not stressful though, and I thoroughly enjoyed my day with the girls.  They seemed to, as well.

That's all for today folks!  See ya over at VDBC starting tomorrow!

Time to get crafty, people!

A big Announcement + a big Sale + the Fantabulous Friday Freebie

No, no, were not expecting. Is that what you thought when you read today's blog title? Hahahaha! 'Fraid not.

Today, I'm announcing that I'm changing where I'm selling my digital die-cut designs. I've been selling at Paperthreads for a long time. I have really enjoyed my time there and the owner and other designers are wonderful! I can't thank Michelle enough for giving me the wonderful opportunities for learning and growth there. This is a business, though, and I've got to do what I think it best for business. Don't worry, I'm not going too far! I'm moving over to The MORE team at Visual Designs By Chris.

Chris and I have been good friends for a number of years. In fact, when my family and I moved here to Arizona four years ago, Chris and I discovered that we would be neighbors. What are the odds that we'd move all the way across the country and end up in the same little town? She probably thought I was stalking her or something. I'm not anymore, I promise.

Working with Chris is going to be just wonderful. It might take me a little time to get my full catalog of a bazillion die-cuts up into the new store, but don't you worry, it will all get there. Plus I'll have some new things, soon, too! 

Before my catalog disappears from Paperthreads, you can go snap up anything you've had your eye on for a while.  I'm having a moving sale!  It's sort of like a garage sale, without the garage.  Everything in my Paperthreads catalog is 50% off from today through Monday.  Time to shop 'til you drop!

Before you go though, I've got a little freebie for you!

Today I'm sharing my die-cut design:  Gift Tag Set

This is one of my very first creations from back in the dark ages when I first had my little blue Wishblade.  In fact, it was only the fifth design I ever put up for sale. I was thinking about it this week as we were talking about those paper Rosettes on Tuesday.  I've been making pleated paper with my digital die-cutters for years.  This design is the first time I worked out how to use the cutter to make it properly. 

The file includes three cutting files.  You'll just need three pieces of paper.  You'll want to open up the instructions to see which file to cut from which kind of paper.  Once you've cut each file out on the right kind of paper, follow the instructions and you'll end up with three great gift tags.  If you only need one, just put the others away in your greeting card stash for the next time you need one.  There's lots of room on the tags for your own stamps and/or embellishments.  Have fun creating!

Boring but Important Legal Stuff:  My terms of use are included in each zipped download.  If you have any questions about how you may use this file, please read it.  By clicking to download the file, you are agreeing to abide by the terms.  If you'd like to share it, please don't.  Rather, send your friends a link to this blog post.  Once it's no longer available as a freebie, you might be tempted to share it with someone.  Please don't!  'Nuf said!

This download will be available until the end of the day Monday, September 26th! 

Sorry!  This freebie download has expired! You can find it in the Sam & Hailey Designs Store.  Check back next Friday for another Fantabulous Friday Freebie!

If you make something with this design, feel free to post your project on your blog and then post a link to the comments section below.

Be sure to bookmark Sam & Hailey Designs at VDBC for the future! 

Time to get crafty, people!

Color Swatch Thursday: Smell the Flowers

Before we moved to Arizona four years ago {Wow!  Time sure has flown!} we lived in Connecticut for... forever it seemed.  I still miss much about living in that beautiful place.  I don't miss the high cost of living, which is what prompted us to move here.  What I do miss?  Mostly, green.  Yup, green.  Okay, another thing I don't miss is the weekly mowing of nearly an acre of lawn.  If I could have the positives of having a cool green lawn back without having to do all the mowing, I would.  Well... I must confess, I didn't do the mowing, but dang, it looked hot and boring and it took the mowers in my family forever to do it!  We're actually contemplating putting in a small patch of grass in our back yard next year.  We have a pretty small yard and I'm tired of looking at gravel all the time.  Luckily with our small yard, if we put in a small patch, I can probably go out there and cut it with scissors.  Or maybe hire a goat.

Another thing I miss?  Our gorgeous flowers.  We do have some nice ones here, too.  But I really miss the huge peony garden we had to one side of our house.  The smelled so sweet in the springtime.  I could throw open my bedroom window and the whole room would fill with the scent.  They surprisingly smelled a lot like roses.  I loved the gorgeous colors of the blooms that would get as big as your head. 

I got to thinking about that garden as I was contemplating color palettes to go along with my flower theme this week.  I even dug around for a couple of hours for my photo cds from back then.  It took me a while to find them.  There they were though, right in a box labeled CDs/Photos on my desk hutch right in front of me.  The first place I looked but for some strange reason the box was invisible that time.  I swear. 

Before I continue with this long digression, I guess I should share the color swatches!  Isn't that what this post is supposed to be about?  Maybe I should change my blog name to Sam & Hailey Digressions.  Sam & Hailey Tangent-Fest?

Today's color swatch is inspired by:  Smell the Flowers

You can download an Adobe Swatch Exchange File for this color scheme from Adobe Kuler.

The reason I wanted those photos is because I have a vivid memory of a day in the spring of 2005 when Samantha was just barely 2 years old.  I remembered us running around barefoot in the grass and taking pictures of her and the flowers.  What a happy memory!  I'm so glad I preserved it on CD before the Great Hard Drive Crash of 2007.

Aren't these just the most gorgeous flowers?

Just look at my tiny girl who kicked off her shoes to run through the grass!  Wouldn't you?

She really liked the flowers.

But didn't really enjoy the picture taking that much.  See that expression on her face?  She still makes that face 6 years later.  It's her, "Huh?" face.  I just love it!



Okay, one last gratuitous gorgeous flower picture and then digression-out!

Time to get crafty, people!