REINVENTION

2019 will be a year for reinventing.

That includes my self, my art, my business and even new relationships.

Stale is a word I dislike and I feel stale.  2018 has been a challenging year for so many people and we all can use a fresh start, a positive attitude, and a creative spark.  That spark can be your cooking, your home, your art, YOUR relationships.

I found some unusual (to me) ways of celebrating the new year...

In Denmark, they save all of their unused dishes and plates until the 31st of December when they affectionately shatter them against the doors of all their friends and family.  (careful!!)

In Spain, the New Year’s tradition for good luck revolves around grapes. If you can manage to stuff 12 grapes in your mouth at midnight you’ve achieved good luck for the next year.  (not all at once I hope!) 

In some South American countries wearing colored underwear will determine your fate for the new year. Red underwear means you’ll find love. Gold means wealth, and white signifies peace.  (How about Hello Kitty?)

In the USA often involves Black Eyed Peas, meant to represent coins or wealth.  (My mother-in-law always opened a can and took one spoonful)

In Scotland, the first person to cross the threshold of a home in the new year should carry a gift for good luck. (I would like a new Kitchen Aide Mixer please)

This one is from a 'Pittsburgher' (my hometown).

How many people still put silver change (nickels, dimes, quarters) outside on their windowsills for New Year's Eve?  I was taught that it is a tradition to bring money into the house for the New Year..!!  AND Remember no chicken today or you’ll be scratching for money the rest of the year

See our group of New Years Collages to make gift tags and placeholders!

ENJOY YOUR 2019, WITH OR WITHOUT CHANGES.  MAKE IT WHAT YOU WANT.

Happy New Year to all party animals!

My mom used to use a saying "Putting on the dog."  It's not something we hear anymore, but Wikipedia defines it as an expression that means 'to make a display of wealth or importance, especially by dressing stylishly and flashily'.  And isn't that what we do when we get out our fanciest party clothes for New Year's Eve?  I took it just a tiny step farther with today's card.

This fancy pooch is ready to party!  You can find her on the Hounds collage sheet.  That tiara she's wearing makes me giggle whenever I see her.

The background paper and embellishments I used on this card are all shiny and add to the festive feel.  The clear florals were stuck on more of the same red paper and then cut out and layered.  The tiniest of them are attached with foam squares to give it more dimension.

Because it's New Year's Eve, I thought a clock would tie the theme together.  The Celebrate sticker sheet has a few beautiful clock designs.  You can even choose which clock hands to use.  All of these were layered with black card stock and scraps of patterned paper and collages cut into geometric shapes.  I added a couple of Dew Drop centers to the White Gold flowers.

And the words "Time to Celebrate!" make the inside of the card bright and shiny, too!  Just sign it with a gold gel pen and it's ready to give away.  Happy New Year to one and all!

Supplies used:
Celebrate and White Gold sticker sheets  and other fun gold glam designs
Red Satin Shimmer paper
Hounds digital collage sheet
Dew Drops and glue dots
Foam  squares and double sided adhesive tape
Card stock

Out with the Old and In with the New!

As the year draws to a close many of us find ourselves thinking about what New we want to bring into our lives for the following year.  It also means we could be looking at what we need to let go of to make way for the New.  For me, part of this thinking led me to a pile of papers I had been hoarding in my craft room for the past probably six or so months since I moved into a different space.

I like to repurpose and reuse where I can so sometimes I find it hard to part with things.  I found some offcuts from a project I shared here earlier in the year - gel press print papers I had used as backgrounds for some ATC Coins.  Anyhow, I decided to use the offcuts up and make an initial start for a 2019 journal.

Taking some A3 size watercolor paper that I often use to create signatures I folded this in half and began to punch squares out of my off cut papers and paste them down onto my page.

I ran out of enough paper to punch squares so the bottom of my page was torn strips and pieces of what was left.

Next I covered this entire gel press print layer with tissue to tone down the color.

Once dry I smeared some Distress Oxide ink over the top in three colors.

Having finished the background I then proceeded to do some stamping of Dream Catchers and made marks with some other stamps, I also punched out some tiny hearts from a dark pink scrap of paper.  My chosen sentiments are to encourage me to Dream and Live them Out in the Year to come.

So yes it was out with the old scraps and into the New Journal.

Anyhow it is back to the tidying up and clearing out.

Wishing you all a wonderful start to 2019.

Danie xx

It's a TRAIN RIDE Day - HI-Jinks for sure!

We are traveling through Northern Arizona into the canyon forest.  

The Train has indoor and outdoor cars, we will take blankets to sit outside and perhaps see some wildlife.  Eagles, mountain goats, mountain lions, coyotes and more may be along the way!  Hot chocolate and chilly weather help to be in the Holiday spirit.  AND even more special today is Jake's 18th Birthday!   We have a surprise cake for him and hope he treasures this magical train ride.

This is the Verde Canyon, (green canyon) the mini Grand Canyon.  

The whole family is having this Christmas Experience as one of our gifts.  Making memories with family is the very best way to celebrate in my opinion.

Thanks for stopping by to visit!  

Merry and Happy Holidays from Jean and Family.

Christmas tags

Many crafters (including me) have been making Christmas cards to send to friends and family.  It's a wonderful way to show those you care for how much you love and appreciate them.  Another way is to create special tags for your gift boxes and bags.  The three tags below are each different styles.

This one uses a single focal image with a scrapbook paper background and a couple of embellishments.

Another style is to use a large image and either attach it to a shipping tag or simply cut your card stock into a tag shape and embellish.

And the last is a collage of themed collage images.

Whichever style you choose to create, your presents will have a little pizzazz to make the person receiving it feel special!

Check out your Christmas collage images at DIY Design Studio.  And don't just stick to Christmas.  There are collages for all types of themes and occasions!  The files are digital so it's not too late to order and start creating your own personal art!  

Here is the link for circular tags too!

How about some Mini's?

Supplies:

Shipping tags

Art tags

Music pages

Christmas images

Threads/ribbons

Chipboard snowflakes

Thursday Makes - Tiny Art Tiles with Scraps

Christmas is one of the times of year that thoughts may turn to religion, it may be the only time you go to mass or find yourself thinking of Jesus. 

 For me its also a time my creating connects me to it.

Creating can be a fleeting few moments or a day of focus depending on your time constraints, usually, at this time of year, it is a fleeting few moments.

I often gather bits and pieces, leftover scraps on my desk etc to begin and see what can come to mind.

Some simple bases (eco artboard squares) painted black, then teamed with leftover cutoffs from Gelli Prints, a religious icon image, a touch of glitter and glossy dimensional glue to seal and create a glass like finish, form small works of art in no time which can be put to use in a variety of ways.  You just have to remember to let the glue dry before touching it.

Icon suggestions click here

Holy Cards click here

Gold Leaf Click here

Eco Art Boards ON SALE click here 

A Holiday Project made of Wood and Paint

I decided that this year I would change up our Christmas Decor. 

(I'm fibbing I do that almost every year!)

This one had red feather boas all over and a red and green theme.

This is for the retro 50's tree.   Turquoise and red.

And this was preparing the Grinch tree!

We have had most every style tree you can imagine.  We went through the shabby chic phase, the gold and glitter phase, traditional red and green, a little bit country, vintage creamy colors and crystals, and Yes even the Grinch tree.  Real ones, artificial ones, indoor, outdoor and even in the bathrooms!  Chandeliers festooned with ribbons, crystals, and ornaments.  It's the one time of year when... MORE IS NOT ENOUGH!

  

We all know how popular "farmhouse" has been, so we decided to try that style this year.    My elf was working to put together a wooden tree collar.  I will stain and paint it with a stencil or two.  I realized I can paint more than one stenciled message since the box has four sides!

And Since we are doing sort of a Farmhouse effect, I will paint and decorate our Chicken Wire Tree as well.  I will use our Dixie Belle paints as a base and decide what to do when that is dry.  I have a few ideas rattling around.   We have 4, 8 and 16 oz jars of Dixie Belle Paints, plus glazes and clear coat.

We downsized our tree this year and it is a 7' slim profile artificial tree (we have two - one for the Family room and one for the Pool room).  Therefore to accommodate the base of the tree the wood collar is 20 inches square with an open bottom.   The corners were reinforced with 1 x 1 pieces halfway up the interior sides.  

A personalized stencil was created on the Silhouette.   The EST. year we were married was added, what fun!

Another heirloom for the future!  The tree colors this year are Red, aged silver Shiny Brite ornaments and a soft blue.   

  

  

Thanks for stopping by, we enjoy your comments!

Holly Jolly Times

Are you READY?
We have a giveaway!   

I made peanut butter chocolate chip cookies and Grinch cookies so far.  I had an amazing helper who is THE best at watching the clock to ensure no burnt cookies!  Something I am guilty of not doing (multitasking diversion).

I am in process of making a variety of sweet Biscotti today.  I also found a recipe for Savory Biscotti with dried tomatoes, olives, basil, and parmesan!

I will also make chipotle cheese crackers and a pomegranate covered cheese ball among other things.  

I got tired just typing this!  It is the time of year that brings out the cook and baker in me.  I have always loved to cook and bake.  I'm not a Julia Child, but prefer honest, simple, homey foods.  

I will do a giveaway of the beautiful mason jar lids for the Holidays. 

Comment below and share to Facebook to have your name in the drawing.

Here are some tried and true recipes for your gifting and eating!

Beer Cheese Spread

1 lb aged natural cheddar cheese

1 lb natural swiss cheese

1 clove garlic, mashed

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1 -2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

8 ounces beer  (regular or non alcoholic)

DIRECTIONS

Grate the cheeses finely.

Mix the cheeses with the garlic, dry mustard and Worcestershire.

Gradually beat in the beer until the mixture is well blended and of spreading consistency.

Place in a small mason jar for gifting.  Store in a covered container in the refrigerator.

Serve at room temperature.

                         ********** 

 VERY CHERRY FLUFF

1 (21-ounce) can cherry pie filling

1 (8-ounce) bowl frozen whipped topping, thawed

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup coarsely chopped nuts (any kind)

In a large bowl, fold together all ingredients.

Spoon into a serving bowl or individual dessert glasses. Chill before serving.  You can add a pirouette cookie to the glass for a garnish.

                          **********

Make sure to comment!                           

Perfect for Gift Giving

Let's make a beautiful gift box!

Today's project is a great upcycle using sturdy packaging from a recent purchse I made.  It is very much like a circular wine bottle "box", but a bit shorter.  It will be great for odd shaped gifts or plyable type gifts like a scarf, kitchen towel or a cute pair of fuzzy socks.  So, let's get started...

Here is what we started with.

YOU can see the complete supply list & links at the bottom of the post.

Here we have the first layer of vintage text pages decoupaged onto the surface.

Next, I dry brushed ivory colored chalk paint, added a bit of black chalk paint here and there, then the final layer was a thin coat of gold metalic using my gold metallic Gelato.  I was going for a worn, vintage look. 

Then, it was time to decorate the lid.  I added more gold metallic, laces, big chunky glitter and die cut snowflakes that I painted white and added more chunky glitter to.  I initially thought I would use a pretty glittered Prima flower on the lid (seen in the top pic here), but decided on the glittered snowflakes. 

 

Now, it was time to add my digital images.  For the back of the box I cut out a number of smaller vintage Santa images and decoupaged them in a random pattern.  I then added more glittered snowflakes.  You can see in the image below that I added beaded trim to the lid of the box...you can never have too many embellishments! 

And here is the front again with a much larger focal image of a very cheery St. Nicholas and a cute little angel peaking over his shoulder...along with a few more glittery snowflakes to tie it all together. 

I hope you are inspired to upcycle your own creation!

DIY Design Studio has everything you need to do just that!

Happy Holidays and Happy Crafting! 

Steph S. 

Supply List -
Santa Brings Cheer Digital Art Collage
Embellishments, Lace and Trims 
PPA glue
Vintage law books  for text pages
Chalk Paint -primitive
Chalk Paint - relic
Gelato Metallic - gold 
Die cuts and other embellishments