my craft journey part 3

hello crafters,
welcome to part three of my craft journey. this is all about mini albums and altered projects. i group these two paper crafting style projects together because they use similar supplies. what i love about altered projects and mini albums is the dimension that you can put into your projects. with standard albums that have page protectors it's best to have supplies that are flat, for me when it comes to mini albums the thicker the better.
transitioning from scrapbooking and cardmaking to altered projects was interesting for me because it really expanded what i considered a craft supply. i was no longer limited to the "scrapbooking" isles in michaels. i was now browsing in the wood section and even the wedding section of the store looking for supplies. when it comes to altered projects you can alter or embellish anything you'd like.

 this part of paper crafting is all about thinking out of the box-you're no longer restricted to a 12x12 layout or an A2 sized card, the possibilities are endless.

common altered projects include: picture frames, cigar boxes, jewelry boxes, notebooks, favor boxes, stick pins and tags to name a few.
mini albums: as the names imply are smaller than the traditional 12x12 or 8x8 albums. Usually they're 6x6 or smaller. you can use a 6x6 album, but it's more fun to grab some chipboard and make your own album. it can be square or a circle or any shape you can die cut.

the other thing i love about altered projects are swaps! you can join a swap site and enjoy making new friends and exchanging beautiful projects with each other. 

so here are the tools you'll want to add to your collection to get into altered projects and mini albums
tools

• glue gun-a wonderful adhesive that's strong and quick drying and helps secure heavier items. 
• kraft mat-if you didn't get one for cardmaking you're for sure going to need one now. to keep your cutting mat or work surface from getting stained. 
• paint-perfect for coloring natural wood any shade you'd like
• paint brushes
• distress inks-another item you may already have if you picked it up while cardmaking. i primarily use walnut stain and vintage photo, but you can collect and use as many colors as you'd like. 
• medium and lightweight chipboard. most scrapbooking stores sell 12x12 sheets of medium weight chipboard. i purchase mine at www.bluemoonscrapbooking.com. you can SAVE MONEY on lightweight chipboard by using cereal boxes-you're going to paint over or cover them with paper so no one will ever know it used to be a cheerios box. 

now for the splurge items.(check out part 1 of my craft journey for tips on stocking up on splurge items) 

• die cutting/embossing machine like the big shot, vagabond, or cuttlebug
• embossing plates and dies. 
• sewing machine

• cinch or bind it all

supplies

• textiles: fabric or felt
• feathers/leaves/sprays
• charms/jewels/pearls
• trims/ribbons/sequins/twine
• tags
• rhinestone flourish
• border stickers/chipboard stickers
• bookplates/nameplates
• dimensional sitckers
• glitter/shimmer : perfect pearls, glimmer mist, smooch spritz, and stickles.
• crackle paint

brands that i love

• graphic 45
• 7 gypsies
• recollections
• tim holtz
• websters pages
• sizzix

now for a little inspiration, check out these youtube channels for amazing inspiration.

• livelovescrap
• mybutterflykisses12
• followthepapertrail

thank you so much for traveling along with me on my craft journey. the best part is that once you get to the end you can cycle back and start all over again, mixing and meshing different techniques and skills you've learned from each phase along the way. it's all about having fun and enjoying this hobby i love. 

it's been so long. . .

. . . and i thought i should at least drop by my poor neglected blog and explain myself. just in case anyone cares to know where i've been all these months.
i started school, online i'm offically a phoenix. and i knew that starting school would cut into my free time, but i didn't realize how much by scrapbooking would suffer.
since i'm not ready to completely abandon my beloved blog, i will do my best to pop in every now and again. but if you're wondering where i am-i'm doing homework, and will be for a couple of years.

i am however, making time to do an 8x8 album for my new niece, just born sept 30th! when i finish i will be sure to post pictures of her album.
it feels great to get back to my scrapbooking roots, and to sit at my craft desk, and to SHOP for scrapbooking supplies again. honestly it's amazing how much changes when you're away for just a short while.
speaking of which, if anyone knows of a good scrapbooking line for a Baby Girl album, please leave it in the comments.
blog ya later
avgscrapgirl :)

a shabby chic education

hello crafters,

i'm an avid youtube watcher. i love finding great craft channels to subscribe to. one of my favorites is livelovescrap, which is Bona's channel. i fell in love with the beautiful page swaps and tag swaps and mini album swaps she would host and feature on her channel. and i thought one day, i'm going to participate in one of her swaps.

now i have to pause and say-i don't like doing multiples. i loathe making the exact same thing, the exact same way more than once. i did invitations for my cousins birthday party once and it was torture-i don't know why i'm like that i just am. . . anyway back to the point. . .
given my despise of making multiples i jumped at the opportunity, when i saw that she was having a what's in your vintage purse swap. i only had to make one purse and ten unique items to go inside. PERFECT! i was so in.

side note. . . i have a tendency to jump into things without always thinking them all the way through. LOL! so what hit me like a ton of bricks after i'd signed up is that, the theme of the purse is vintage shabby chic. . . which is gorgeous, and beautiful, and so NOT my style.

so i had-not a problem, but an opportunity. to learn vintage shabby chic, and that's what i've been doing all week: studying.

here's what i found out so far. . .
-lace is a BIG deal. these shabby chic-er's love their lace, and it truly does make their projects look delicate, beautiful and romantic.
-vintage trinkets: keys, bookplates, buttons, cameos-all vitally important
-pearls-oh the beautiful pearls :)
-doilies-which are pretty trendy right now, even if you're not a shabby chic-er.
-flowers, flowers, and more flowers. and don't forget to adorn them with sprays and swirling rhinestones, and to coated with glimmer mist so they have just the right shimmer.
-certain companies are perfect for vintage shabby chic: graphic 45, prima, webster's pages to name a few.

so what am i going to do with all this information?
hopefully make a really cute vintage shabby chic purse! i'm going to spend all day tomorrow working on it. and i'll be back with a video to show you how i did.
wish me luck!
shawnte, the avgscrapgirl

so out of the loop

it's been a long time since i've posted anything on my poor neglected blog. my only excuse. . . life happens. but now that i'm trying to get back into the swing of things, i'm feeling like so much has happened since i've been away.

like the fact that i just checked jen mcguires blog and i'm all: when did she update it?!-it looks amazing! and believe it or not i haven't watched vicky's weekend video for the last month-crazyness! i don't know what collections are hot, what embellishments are trending, or what new product has the craft world buzzing-all the things i would have been able to tell you in an instant two months ago. crazy how a two month hiatus has me so out of the loop.

so, i'll be hitting my craft table this weekend, and hopefully i'll find my way back into the loop.

3 years ago. . .

i married the best friend i've ever had.(yes, i'm one of those people who's head over heels in love with her husband-i'm really blessed and i thank God for him daily :)

so i thought i'd share a few photos from our wedding. 

mr & mrs parks all kiss-y-face :)

my little cousins, i LOVE them so much. chrissy giving me smooches and my

justin who was an adorable ring bearer

 father/daughter dance. this is the first time i've ever danced with my dad

turns out, he wasn't so bad 

throwing my bouquet. which was kind of a dud. it hit the cieling and

landed barely a two feet behind me, so it was a

bad throw, and they wouldn't let me have a do over

my cousin brandon, who caught my garter 

and my husband brandon

posing like they're in a rap video

these two are comedy when they get together

 cutting the cake! it was delicious

out photographer wanted us to smash cake on our faces

there was no way i was ruining my makeup over cake

compromise: a lil cake on our noses :)

sparkling cider toasts! (no champagne cause we don't drink :)

random fact-everytime i see this photo i think

wow my nails looked amazing! lol, seriously it was the first 

time in life that i'd been completely happy with a manicure and it

couldn't have happened for a better occasion

february is a special month for us, we met in February 2004, began dating February 27th, 2005, and got married February 23rd, 2008. so i'm spending my day with the one i love and i hope you do the same


blog ya later :)

my craft journey part 2

hello crafters! 

this is part 2 of my craft journey, giving tips on moving from scrapbooking to cardmaking to mini albums/altered projects. in this segment we'll cover cardmaking. for tips on getting started with scrpabooking, click here to read part 1

stepping into cardmaking can seem oddly familiar to a scrapbooker. you have all these tools and supplies, but you've got to look at them a little bit differently. and then you realize there are some tools you still need. the biggest difference for me personally-STAMPS. i didn't own a single stamp before i became a cardmaker.suddenly i was in love with this new hobby and purchasing stamps became a major part of my scrapbook shopping budget. to speak in scrap terms photos and journaling are to layouts what images and sentiments are to cards. 


so let's go over the tools that you'll want to add to your collection when shifting into cardmaking

tools
stamps

• sentiments: start with a generic "everyday or any occasion" stamp set, as well as birthday and thank you cards. then add seasonal sentiments

• images: should be personalized to your style of cardmaking. if you have a playful style find character images, if you have more of an elegant style find large flowers
• background: background stamps are usually sized to fit the full front of a standard sized card (5 1/2 x 4 1/4). 

 stamping surface

• a grid mat is great for measuring, but when stamping you need a surface you can easily wipe clean. i recommend ranger's kraft mat or inkadinado's stampin surface. 

inks

• begin with basic colors: black, brown, and then begin adding colors that you like. 

bone folder (you may already have, especially if you bought a tool kit!)
scoring board
embossing folders
dimensional adhesive
baby wipes

• an inexpensive way to clean your stamps!

heat tool
embossing powders

now for the cardmaking splurge! copic markers. they're alcohol based markers, that blend beautifully, and make your coloring look amazing.
(check out part 1 for my tips on how to pay for splurge items)

like with scrapbooking you're going to have cardmaking supplies (embellishments you're going to buy, use, and need to replenish, unlike most of your tools which you'll only need to buy once) 
there are so many different kinds of embellishments out there i'm going to touch on a few popular ones for cardmaking, but i'm sure i'm not going to get them all. (if you'd like to add something to the list leave it in the comments :)


supplies
glimmer mist
perfect pearls
gems
UTEE (ultra thick embossing enamel)

brands i love

• hero arts
• ranger
• inkadinkado
• tim holtz
• tattered angels

now you've got all your supplies, it's time for a little inspiration, check out these blogs and youtube pages, and you'll be making beautiful cards in not time. 

blogs you'll love

• jennifer mcguire ink
• kwerner deisgn
• stampin a latte
• lucy's cards
• the daily marker

youtube channels

• starofmay
• splitcoaststampers
• NicholM15
• heroarts

thanks for reading along, in part 3 i'll we'll go into mini album's and altered projects!

my craft journey part 1

happy new years scrappers!

my craft journey started with scrapbooking, then i delved into cardmaking, and now i'm getting into mini albums & altered projects. each craft comes with its own joys but transitioning from one to the next can have it's challenges. in this three part series i'm going to give you some tips on how to get started, the supplies you need, and some helpful inspiration. 

so let's start with scrapbooking

we're going to break our materials into 2 categories: tools & supplies

tools

cutting mat 12x12

paper trimmer

cardstock

  -get started by purchasing a pack of cardstock in assorted colors. make sure 

   you have neutrals like black, white and kraft

scissors

adhesive

  -tape runner adhesive, liquid glue, & glue dots for small embellishments
   like buttons or metal embellishments

craft knife/paper piercer

  -i recommend purchasing a tool kit like the one making memories sells, you'll 

   get a great range of tools all at once

punches

  -i recommend starting with circle punches, purchase in a range of sizes

   & get the scallop punches to complement them, then do the same with

     the square punches, then you can branch out into other shapes

   -border punches come in a lot of different patterns, start with a general 

    scallop that you like, it'll be versatile and you can use it on a lot of different

      pages, and then you can get seasonal punches as well.
crop-a-dile
corner chomper

these next tools i'm going to call splurges. they're a little pricier than the previous tools listed, but they're worth the investment. 

tips for purchasing pricier items-

• take advantage of holiday sales
• have your family members get you scrapbooking gift certificates for your birthday and use those to offset the cost
• get michael's newspaper coupons they often have coupons that allow you to take 40% off of your purchase
• and check out ebay. 

splurges

die cutting machine
    -like the cricut expression or silhouette. they allow you to cut out letters
     and images which can save you money on embellishments

now that we've covered tools lets move on to supplies. supplies are different from tools because these are the items that you're going to continue purchasing that will change often.

supplies
designer paper
   -this can be purchased individually or in collection packs. 
stickers
rub-ons
ribbon
flowers
die cuts
eyelets
snaps

brands that i love

• american crafts
• making memories
• basic grey
• cosmo cricket
• bobunny

now that you have all of your supplies it's time to get started. remember when you're scrapbooking that the primary focus is the photos and the journaling, everything else is just decoration. you're preserving your memories and there's no wrong way to do that!



inspiration

blogs you'll love-if you've got all your supplies and still aren't quite sure how to get started check out these blogs, you will be inspired!

• susan weinroth
• jen gallacher
• nichol magouirk

 youtube channels

• basicgrey -check out their basic inspiration classes!
• nicholM15 -Nicole Magouirk's youtube channel shows a range of amazing techniques that are sure to get your creative wheels turning
• aboverubiesstudio-this channel has a wide range of craft information that will help you in all craft styles, and they have great tips on using your cricut in your scrapbooking

so now that we have our starting point covered, in part 2 i'll tell you how to transition from being a scrapbooker to a cardmaker!