With the temperature getting warmer and warmer, I thought this butterfly mobile by Auntie Recreates would be seasonally appropriate. It is also a way to reuse some cardboard that you may have laying about the house, waiting to be recycled and repurposed into something pretty. Now who wouldn’t like that?
I wish I had so many pencils! But I wish I could use them artistically even more! LOL I thought this was a great “green” way to recycle and repurpose and couldn’t wait to share it with you. See it at Recyclart. :0)
Remember records? Well, this project is just too cool for school! Head on over to Annekata’s blog to see how she made this great fall wreath by recycling an album. You just gotta love it. See the tutorial here.
It’s always nice to be “green” whenever we can and I think this funky pen holder takes the cake. It is made out of an old phonebook! Isn’t that a wicked idea? I tell ya, some people are so great at thinking out of the box! If you are intrigued and want to make one of your own, head over to Chica and Jo and see the tutorial here.
I completely tripped out over this site a few months back and I love it. :0) Its called How About Orange and it’s full of fun stuff from links to free fonts to printables and how to’s. Not everything is scrap related at all but I found so many great links and photos on this site that I just had to share.
Be sure to check out the cute tutorial on how to make gift bags out of newspaper. It’s a great way to stay “green” and recycle/repurpose paper.
I know what you’re thinking: “SC Johnson: A Family Company?” . Yup, that’s the one. I stumbled across their site and found this really cool tutorial on how to make a ziploc bag tote.
Isn’t it cute? You could stash cards in their or embellies, anything really. Too sweet!
See it all here.
By Jennifer C.
These literally took me minutes and I think they will make a big difference in my decorating. I just took some old vases that were under the sink and wrapped some ribbon around them and then put a flower on one and an ornament on the other. I think I will fill one with candy and then I may make a centerpiece for the table with the other.
You could even put a plant in one of them and give as a gift. I hope you like them. I would love to see what you come up with! Have fun!
Written by Mary Chong
http://www.marys-creative-zone.blogspot.com/
When I’m on holiday or just out and about taking photos I often take shots of unlikely things like textures, brickwork, sand, stones etc. These make awesome backgrounds for titles, journaling blocks and mattes or just when you need that “something”.
Simply print out your textural photos and stick alpha stickers or die cuts right over top.
You can also use these photos for when you just want to add some texture : cut your photos into geometric shapes for embellishments. This is an easy way to add extra flavour and interest to your layout.
Another thing you can do is to use your photos in your die cut machine. Cut your title directly out of the photos.
If you are handy with your photo editing software you can type your lettering right over top of your texture and then print it out – fast and easy – and you don’t have to mess around with glue!
Here are some examples:
On a recent trip through the Mediterranean I took photos of marble tile work from the floor of the Pantheon and the stone walkways surrounding the Coliseum in Rome. I manipulated these in Photoshop to create the following title blocks.
Here’s a layout using the photos traditionally. As you can see, I’ve taken photos of the brick walls of the old buildings in the area and used them as a background for my journaling. The added bonus is that the colouring matches perfectly with the rest of the photos and I didn’t have to worry about matching cardstock.
So, the next time you are out and about take some photos of the sand or the boardwalk or the grass and use them in your layouts.
Give it a try – I’d love to see how this technique works for you.
~Making a “Bag-a-lope”
by Mary Chong, SBCH HOF Member
This is an “oldie but a goodie” and I hope you like it PLUS it’s just in time for Valentines Day crafting.
We at Scrapbookers Clubhouse are all about recycling and repurposing things into crafty stuff. So when I needed an article topic I instantly thought of the…
BAG-A-LOPE
Now is it a bag or is it an envelope?
First it was an envelope.
I get my envelopes in bundles from the local variety store. They are the extra “leftover” envelopes that remain after all the cards are sold. I’m not sure why there are “leftovers”, but they’re always there and the assorted colours sell for about $2 per bundle. I’ve heard tell of thrifty crafters approaching various card stores and offering to take these off their hands because really – they can just say no – no harm no foul.
Another option if you are especially crafty is to use a used envelope. An expert crafter would find a way to incorporate the address label and postmark into the decorating of the bag!
Supplies:
Supplies required to create a "Bag-a-lope"
– Squarish envelope
– Ruler
– Bone folder
– Decorative scissors or border punch (optional)
– Embellishments and something to decorate the envelope
– Adhesive
Step 1:
– Seal the envelope well
Step 2:
– Tear off the top of one narrow end
– OR cut with decorative scissors or border punch
– This is now the bag’s opening
Step 3:
– On the other 3 sides measure, and score with the bone folder approximately 1″
– The 1″ is more of a guide and will vary according to how deep you want your bag and the size of your original envelope. The key here is that each score mark must be equal in width or it won’t work.
Step 4:
– Stick your hand inside the open end and open up the envelope to create the shape of the bag
– Decorate your bag
– Tape or glue down the bottom flaps
*I find it easier if I’m using stamps etc. to decorate the bag before I stick down the flaps.
And there you have it – a BAG-A-LOPE is born!
Photo #3
Photo #4
Happy New Year everyone!
Today’s article is brought to you by Michelle Vekved, an artist and Design Team Member here in the SBCH Community. Michelle has some super easy and effective tips for avoiding waste while streeeetching that scrappy-dollar!
Read on for some great tips as we enter 2009. Thanks Michelle!
“Ok, I am a paper hoarder. And a ribbon hoarder. And a chipboard hoarder.”
Tips on saving that oh-so-great paper and getting the most right down the very last hairline strip.
by Michelle Vekved
PAPER
1. The Trap Door Technique. When using paper to matt a photo, cut a square out of the paper that’s just smaller than the photo you’re putting over it, as if you were making a photo frame. Then glue the photo to the edges or the cardstock behind the matt, and voila, another decent sized scrap to use on another worthy layout.
2. Don’t Throw Out the Scraps! Even small scraps can be made into priceless pieces. Flower petals, leaves, anything you might need to pop some color or pattern into your layout can be cut out from scraps. If your scraps are very small, glue them all collage style by color onto plain cardstock or cardboard. Now you have a unique piece of pattern paper that would be perfect for cutting out custom embellishments or making a photo frame.
3. Everytime you cut a thin strip of paper you don’t need off of another piece, put them all in an envelope to use as strips on layouts. No more hacking into a brand new piece of paper just to have a funky border or to cut a scallop out of. Similar to the scrap idea, you can adhere them all to one sheet (either by color or style or whatever) to use as a piece of unique paper. Or line them up and stagger them behind a photo as a funky matt. Or weave them into a cool piece of woven 12×12.
RIBBON
1. What They Don’t Know Won’t Hurt Them. If your ribbon strip goes behind a photo or other large item, cut it to fit around the item. Not only do you get to save some of that awesome stash, but your photo won’t be warped from the ribbon being behind it as well.
2. Flat Isn’t Always Faulty. Instead of tying a ribbon bow and using more than you need to, make a flat bow by making a loop that when pressed flat is as wide as you want the bow, then a small loop to go around the middle. It uses less ribbon than tying does and it sits flatter on your layout. Tails can be cut out and simply glued in place under the edges of the ribbon or simply place the ribbon on top of another strip to act like a buckle would.
3. Geese Flock in V’s, Ribbon Doesn’t Have To. Instead of V’ing the ends of your ribbons, cut them on an angle. The next piece you need to cut will already be angled and you don’t have to waste even a smidgen of it to cut it straight and V it again.
4. V is for Very Easy. Remember Valentine’s hearts folded and cut out of construction paper? To get a perfect V every time, and stop redoing it over and over (and wasting ribbon), fold the ribbon in half lengthwise where you’re going to cut and cut on an angle towards the fold. When you open it up, you now have a perfectly even V.
CHIPBOARD
1. Gimme Gimme Gimme My Chipboard! Getting more out of something than what is obviously there is always a great thing. When you buy chipboard that pops out of a larger piece (ie: 12×12 diecut sheets), save the 12×12 popped piece. Use it as a stencil for more chipboard or to cut out paper pieces.
2. Cut To The Chase. Use heavy duty scissors to cut out the hole from a used chipboard sheet again in an outline by cutting around the hole about 1/4″ from the hole. I’ve done this with letters when I ran out and it looks REALLY neat. I also used pinking shears to cut out some glittery hearts from Melissa Frances glitter sets.
3. When In Doubt, Use What’s Out. That 12×12 or 6×6 empty chipboard die cut sheet would make a neat 12×12 layout background! Either paint it or ink it and use it alone (think stamped transparency or lace cardstock) or attach a piece of cardstock or pattern paper to the back for a more solid look.
4. Instantly In Pictures. Shaped holes in chipboard diecut sheets make cool photo frames! Cut them out either close to the shape for a traditional square frame, or cut it square by cutting into the neighboring holes and you get a funky edged frame with a funky interior shape.
Have fun with your leftovers and the more you save, the less you need to buy! 🙂
***
Remember to check out Michelle’s DT Gallery Folder for her recent work with the SBCH January 2009 “Prudence” Kit!
Scrapbooker's Club House Blog 