Tuesday, January 28, 2014

CCL ARTFUL CREATION CONTEST: Flower Fairy (Project #4)

Still have some materials from Lucky's box so I created a 4th project for the CCL Artful Creation Contest. I used the following items:

6x6 floral scrapbook paper
12x12 purple scrapbook paper
12x12 pastel stripe scrapbook paper
8.5x11 purple and mint green self adhesive sheets
blank white card stock trifold card
pink cotton lace trim
white satin trim
silver mesh
sheer pink ribbon
pink holographic circle stickers
self adhesive pink pearls
plastic flower buttons
flat back pearls
hot pink pearls
rhinestone bling



And this is the project!

I started by creating a base out of a couple of empty 
ribbon spools I had on hand. 
I die cut one of the pieces of the trifold card using the 
Tattered Doily die by Tim Holtz. This created
the back wall. I covered it using the pretty purple 
scrapbook paper from the box. 
I die cut a 2nd doily and attached it to the base
of the wall just to add some interest.

I die cut the leaves from the green glitter paper
The paper flowers were die cut using the Tattered Florals
die by Tim Holtz. I the purple paper for the smaller ones
and the pastel stripe paper for the two larger ones.

I stamped the fairy using a stamp from Graphic 45's 
Nutcracker Sweet collection. I stamped her tutu onto
the 6x6 paper and paper pieced it on to the original 
image for dimension. Her skirt is trimmed 
with some sheer pink ribbon from the box.
The butterfly was punched with a 
Martha Stewart punch, using the purple glitter paper. 
I used the tiny pink pearls to create the body of the butterfly. 
Her wings were punched from another 
Martha Stewart butterfly die.

The "grass" she's standing on is the silver mesh from 
the box. I sprayed it with some green Lindy's Starburst. 
She is surrounded by the cute plastic flower buttons 
and another die cut flower. 

I sprayed the pink crochet lace with some pinkish Lindy's to
give it some more depth and shimmer. After that, I wrapped
it around the base to make it look a bit like
a crown for a fairy princess. :-)

I also adhered some of the pink holographic circles to 
the center of each flower on the lace. 
At the bottom of the base, I adhere some white satin pleated 
ribbon that came in the box. 

EVERYTHING was liberally glittered with Stickles! Of course!
Still have some ideas for more projects. Hoping to get to them
before the deadline.

Blessings,
Millie

Sunday, January 19, 2014

CCL ARTFUL CREATION CONTEST: Springtime Layout (Project #3)

This is my 3rd entry for the Artful Creation Contest over at Creating the Crafty Life. Thanks to all of this polar air, I've been spending a lot of time daydreaming about Spring!

Below are most of the items I used from the wonderful box sent by Lucky:

In addition to the items below, I used a cute little wooden dress form 
and a 6"x6" sheet of pretty scrapbook paper she put in the box. 
The silk orchid I used was actually a light green color and 
I also used a white silk lily that was also included in the box.


 This is the result. My little reminder that Spring is on it's way!
I whitewashed a piece of corrugated cardboard and adhered 
the whole piece to it. I've had the vintage photo for a while
and thought she was perfect for the project.
The punchinella in the background was painted white then glittered
with the iridescent glitter we were sent. 
Created the stickpin using some of the beads from the box. 
The metal heart charm was from my stash.
I prepped it with gesso then painted on some 
Lindy's in blues and greens.
The dress form was also whitewashed. I made the skirt using 
the pretty silk lily adhered one of the sheer white flowers, and then 
attached one of the pretty yellow dangling beads.
I think the sheer green ribbon was also from the box 
(can't remember). I adhered another pale yellow gem
and another yellow bead dangle. 
The glittery aqua flower was punched from some of the card stock 
included in the box. The butterflies were also punched
from very light aqua card stock I received as well.

I think that's everything. I have a few more ideas for projects using the remainder of the supplies we were sent so I'll be working on those this week.

Blessings,
Millie

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

CCL ARTFUL CREATION CONTEST: Altered Dress Form (Project #2)

Got knocked off my feet last week by a stomach bug and then lost my creative spark so this took forever to complete. After dismantling it a couple of times (and with some help from my 9 year old and his growing artistic eye) I managed to finally finish this today.

These are the items I used from the box that Lucky sent me:





 And this is the end result. I wanted the dress form to be
functional, so I attached a clip to the top to hold
a small monthly calendar and a few mementos.
The pretty lady in the photo is my mom. She would have
looked smashing in a dress like this! :-)


I gave everything a white wash with some gesso 
just to soften the lines a bit.
This is where my 9 year old helped out.
I originally had this grey pleated skirt on the left side of the dress.
He told me it looked uneven. He was right! :-)



Close up of the skirt. I made the flower with the large
pearl using my flower punch and the brownish
cardstock Lucky sent in the box. 
The rest of the flowerscame from the box.
Hard to see, but the charms dangling from the skirt are a 
purse and a key. The leaves were originally green,
but I used the fine silver glitter to bling them up
a bit and to match the color scheme. 


Backside. I ran a stitch through the lace and the silver mesh,
then gathered to give it volume. 

Happy with the way this turned out. Now on to Project #3!!!

Blessings,
Millie







Monday, January 6, 2014

CCL ARTFUL CREATION CONTEST: Altered Valentine Spool (Project #1)

Creating the Crafty Life is hosting a fantastic contest this month! 25 participants were sent a box of crafty goodies all the way from India (thanks Lucky!)! Everyone essentially received the same items, just in different colors. The challenge is to use the items in the box to create at least 3 projects. The members of the CCL Ning site will vote to determine the winners. Thanks to Misty (MB Treasurista) for providing the prizes for this fun contest!

This is what I received in my box:


As soon as I opened it, my wheels were turning. I immediately pulled out the items below for the 1st project:


And this is my 1st entry:

A Valentine Spool!

I used elements from Graphic 45's Place in Time collection (February Cut Aparts). I made the spool using two round coasters and a TP roll. I purchased the pretty red velvet ribbon from Michael's, last year after Christmas. 

I took half of a clear plastic heart ornament and covered it with some of the pretty gold metallic mesh fabric that Lucky included in the box. After I attached the lovely lady, the stamps, and the "Kisses" sentiment, I propped it up in the very large and lovely red velvet rose that came in the box. I glitzed up the small wooden cherubs with the iridescent glitter that was in the box and attached them on either side of the image. 

The stick pins were created from beads that also came from the box. The pretty pink flower was coffee stained to give it a more vintage look. I attached another bead from the box in the center of the flower. 

Lucky also included a lot of different charms so I combined three of them (a heart, a key, and some pink faceted beads) and attached them to the front. It's hard to see, but behind them are a couple of sheer white flowers, also from the box. 

The bases of the spool were covered with some gold glitter paper. It already had adhesive on the back so it was a breeze to attach. The pearl trim was also self stick and I placed it around each base to finish it off. The brown ruffle trim reminded me of Valentine chocolates so I placed it at the top and bottom. 

I LOVE how this turned out. Win or lose, it was a fun project! Now on to Project #2!

Blessings,
Millie


Friday, January 3, 2014

Beach/Ocean Theme Altered Canvas

Created this canvas as a New Year's gift for a very special young lady.

According to her mom, she loves the beach
so the theme was easy to pick. 
For this canvas, I mostly used 

I stamped the Bible verse on acetate using 
StayZ On ink in Jet Black and adhered it to a frame
die cut from a Spellbinders die.


I did a lot of "fussy cutting" to achieve a dimensional look. 
The "Believe" sentiment is, once again, from my friends at 
I inked it with greens and blues, white washed it,
then embossed it with clear embossing powder. 

Prayed for this young lady all the way through this project. I'm confident the Lord has great plans for her in 2014. :-)

Blessings,
Millie

Masculine Shadowbox for Hubby

Created this very special shadowbox for my husband for Christmas this year.

I used a 6"x6" black shadowbox by 7 Gypsies. 
I wanted the objects to represent who my husband 
is and some of his interests. 

Love this photo of him with the boys. 
The corner piece is from my friends
at Stay True to God. Found the dimensional 
Bible sticker at Goodwill for mere pennies.
The gears and cogs are from 
various sources. 

 The side cubbies hold things that relate
to my husband: where he's been, his love
of games (especially chess), his
engineering background,
 and, of course, his faith in Christ.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
"Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead..." (Phil. 3:14), press on and press in to the ONE who has blessed you with another year!

Millie