Cut 'n Paste

Paradise Found

I am currently on holiday in Italy and enjoying the food, culture and antiques! I have been taking notes and look forward to sharing my discoveries with you when I get home. In the meantime, here are a few of the things we've seen...

Crafting up a storm!

A few years ago I read a quote in a novel about someone who found their "Contentment in Creativity". For whatever reason the sentiment of those three words really resonated with me, and I think about them often. This week, my contentment has been found working on concepts for upcoming workshops. I have a million ideas, but it's all about refining them and turing them into a project which students can complete during class time.

I am pleased to be sharing that I will be one of the instructors along with Terri Brush and Amy Hanna at Spring Art Camp April 11-15, 2013 hosted by Terri. I know that it's a long way off, but Terri's events usually sell out well in advance, so if you're interested, check it out!

It might be possible...

Just thought I'd give you a heads up that artist extraordinaire Sally Jean is having a trunk show on her website and selling some original bracelets. Check it out here. I was lucky enough to purchase the one shown above - so pretty, right?! (click on the image to see an expanded version of the photos)

Have a great weekend friends!

The birthday boy tag

I hope you have been having a lovely week! Work has been keeping me hoppin' lately...good things are happening!

I've shared photo tag projects with you in the past, today I have a new one for you. This one was made for one of my Canadian Scrapbooker articles awhile back...but I still love it ☺. I hoard vintage photos, so using them on tags, like this one, is a great way for me to actually use my stash. Although I will admit, that sometimes I have a hard time using the originals...

Soldered Charms

Hi friends, I know that it's been a while since I've updated my blog. In all honesty I had a difficult February and March emotionally. I won't go into details, but the significance of what happened this time last year was a challenge to work through - the anniversary just threw me for a loop. But, I'm back and doing much better now.

Mid- March I decided to sign up for a jewelry course with my friend Tiffany. I had heard great things about Terri Brush's workshops and the time was right to sign up and head down to Chehalis for one of her classes. It was SO much fun. I didn't actually make the class project, but that was the fun part about it. Terri gave us some techniques and supplies and let us each do what we were inspired to do! I have a few other things I worked on as well, but they are not quite finished yet, so I'll post them later.

Back home from Sweden

I returned home early this week after a whirlwind trip to Sweden for the Sweden Scrap Happening. It was pretty cold, but there was only a dusting of snow on the ground, which (I was told) is much less than normal for this time of year.

This was the convention center where my hotel room and the event was located. I loved the bright yellow buildings. So crisp and colorful! The building on the left had my room in it, and the one on the right, in the back of the photo, had more hotel rooms and the dinning hall. When I took this photo I had my back to the building which had the shop and workshop rooms in it. 

I had the pleasure to teach to two different sets of ladies (and one creative guy!). A special thank you to each student for being so creative and such a pleasure to teach. I felt very welcomed and accepted.

Here is one group of students watching a demonstration:

 
The 'upstairs' group with their finished albums:

The 'downstairs' group, also with their finished albums:


I wish to also publicly thank my host Katarina, who took such good care of me and made me feel so comfortable. Thank you for hosting such a smooth running event Katarina. It was a delight to be a part of your first Scrap Happening!
(Sorry that this photo is so blurry)

I had a wonderful time, and can't wait to go back sometime!

Hugs...

Super easy Notebook project

Hi friends, I hope you had a great weekend and that this coming week treats you well. On Wed. I head off to Sweden for my upcoming workshop. I am really looking forward to it. I love travel, love teaching, and love our Melissa Frances product line (of course!), so it's going to be a fun weekend ahead! I have finally photographed a few of my CHA booth samples and wanted to share them with you here.

This notebook uses the Melissa Frances scalloped rectangle backdrop cut in half for the cover. Before adding the patterned paper to the cover I used cream acrylic paint to cover the raw chipboard. After the paint was dry, I used sandpaper to rough up the edges a bit for a great distressed look. I also covered the painted borders with Ranger Distress Stickels in Rock Candy so that they have a subtle shimmer. Once the stickels glue was dry, I used our new Attic Treasures Volume 3 6x6 papers to cover the front and back of the chipboard. Then, it was time to embellish it. The chipboard accents above and below the photo are from our 5th Avenue Chipboard Collection. The super sweet vintage photo is cut out of the Madonna Collage (PA393) patterned paper. After cutting it out, I mounted the photo on chipboard, then topped it with Glossy Accents by Ranger to give it a high gloss finish. For the inside of the notebook, I just cut some white and ivory cardstock along with our Alma patterned paper (a great neutral graph paper) 4x6 and bound it all together with my Bind it all machine. This was a super easy and fun project.

Workshop in Sweden

I am happy to announce that I will be teaching a fun filled scrapbook workshop in Sweden Feb 25-26 at the Sweden Scrap Happening. Scandinavia has been such a welcoming market to the Melissa Frances brand, so we were delighted when the invitation came to come in person and teach. I can't wait to get to know my host better and meet her customers, whom I hope will become friends by the end of the weekend!

Here's a little bit about the class: We will be using the Melissa Frances yearly calendar mini album as our base and embellish it using products from our 5th Avenue and brand new C'est la Vie Collections. We'll talk about the best way to make a durable covering for chipboard bases, what mica is and how to use it, along with tips and tricks that Carolyn has picked up in her 12 years of scrapbooking. Class will also contain products from American Crafts and Bazzill.

Please note that the real project will be slightly different from the promo image seen above as we will be using some of the new products just released at CHA in the workshop!

Home from CHA

(Melissa and Carolyn. Photo courtesy of Sherrie Siemens)

I arrived home on Saturday afternoon from California where I attended the Craft and Hobby Association Trade Show. While I am feeling a bit run down from all the hard work, I am also energized from the customers, friends and collegues who came by our booth to place orders and visit.  As a company we had a great show and feel so blessed. Thank you so much! If you haven't already done so, I invite you to check out the following posts on the Melissa Frances blog to see more of our new product offerings: a few photos of our booth and samples, New home decor and giftware, Alphabits stickers, Attic Treasures Vol. 3, C'est la Vie Stickers, C'est la Vie.

Melissa Frances CHA product launches

Hi everyone! I've been running around trying to tie up loose ends before leaving for the Craft & Hobby Association trade show. I think that I've got everything ready-to-go, and this afternoon I'll be heading for the airport to fly to the show in Anaheim, CA.

I am so excited about the new products that we at Melissa Frances are releasing. We will have two new Collections:

You can see peeks of C'est la Vie here. Be sure to leave a comment on the linked post as one random winner will receive the Collection. Our Attic Treasures Vol. 3 Collection will also be featured on the Melissa Frances blog on Thursday, Jan 26th. I'll put up the link when possible.

Here's a layout sample I made for the C'est la Vie Collection:


If you are attending the CHA show, please stop by booth #1991 to see these releases in person and have a little visit ☺