Friday Finds -- Second Edition

I thought about titling this post, "They call me, Ishmael," because one of my finds this week is something I've been searching for over the past few months. If I say The Color Room, what do you think of? For some, it might be simply a colorful room. For others, it's probably a cute color palette. For me, it's been, "Goodness, I think most of these combinations I see posted on a variety of blogs are so flipping cool! I simply must find the home of all the cute graphics and sources of inspiration!" I hunted often. I was eluded often....until this past week! So, I offer you a chance to find it, too. You know, if you also referred to yourself as Ishmael and have been looking for a rather lovely whale. I'm new there, but if I understand correctly, they post a new color challenge each Friday. Here's what I found last week:


My favorites, so naturally I played along and posted my interpretation previously on this blog. This is what I found for this edition:



I've also used this great sketch from Frosted Designs:



Speaking of Frosted Designs, they've kicked off a new Friday Challenge -- Monochromatic! Very cool, huh? If you're interested, follow this link here and learn how to play and enter.


I've been in a scrappy funk lately, and this sketch was so easy, I couldn't pass it up! That seems to have been a theme for me over the past few days, not wanting to pass things up. It's also been referred to as the IWANT monster. Case in point, this entire line from Crater Paper:



And then there's Tim Holtz:




I've been making myself avoid the Prima blogs a bit, kinda like chocolate chip cookies. Me want! Oh, speaking of cookies, Etsy put up a new blog with a great recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies. Yum!

To go with those cookies, why not a nice cup of tea? Micupoftea posted two great blogs recently. One has information on loose tea while another has this cool link to learn about caulking your paper crafting projects. I know!

Now, there's also a birthday woman on the loose! Tiffany, aka Breakfast @ Tiffany's!, is having a lengthy birthday celebration with fun challenges all her own. She's a fun paper crafter, too. Check her out.

Dare I forget one last! Sketches In Thyme is having an open challenge this week. Get more details here, but the gist is that you choose the sketch you use to inspire your page. Share a link with them to your entry for a chance to be a top 3 or winner!

Annnd, now I'm off to see why DS is sleeping in so well. Could be that his body finally wants to catch up on rest (been sick) but who knows?

14

Hello! I'm busted, writing this in advance, so I'm not going to have a lot of conversation. I've also been the gracious recipient of DS's cold. Woohoo, huh? I did want to share a LO I created this week. It was primarily inspired by this week's challenge at The Color Room:



But I also loved the Tuesday Sketch at Frosted Designs:



Here's my take:



The first detail I'll highlight is this acrylic tag. It was also inspired by the Friday Challenge at Frosted Designs -- use vellum, transparency or acrylic on a project. It's a small piece of acrylic, but I seem to be in constant battle with my vellum. Just ask the other two projects I'm still working on! The tag does say "Pounds Tall." I do not currently weigh 14 pounds. I'm currently a size 14 -- a very big deal for me. Privately, I'll be adding my weight beside the acrylic tag. I think we can all agree that's personal enough.



I also had fun creating the frame around the photo It's a combination Technique Tuesday tile, paint, a layer of Glimmer Mist (Rip Tide), Distressed Stickles and these awesome stamps created by:



The chipboard butterfly is courtesy of a prize won on the blog of Crafty Sprinkles. I misted it with Glimmer Mist (Rip Tide) and covered the vines in more Distressed Stickles.



The beautiful flowers are Prima, of course. The butterflies are fussy-cut from the background pp (DCWV, Mariposa). I kinda figured no one would mind if I covered my shower curtain. It's a pretty curtain but....

Thank you for taking the time to read and look. I look forward to being able to pop in on many challenges tomorrow to catch up on other participants' work and do the same.

Stay healthy!

By Way of Mental Note:

Wow! That title reminded me of even more than I wanted it to. I had an idea last Saturday to create a weekly feature on my blog, Friday Finds. In part, I hoped the blog would be a way for me to post something new at least once each week because I'd make myself post a bunch of cool links and fun stuff each Friday for everyone else to check out in turn. In part, it's just fun to share. We all travel in slightly different directions through the blogosphere and web. Why not share something potentially new and different?

.....Why not make this my first Friday Find? Afterall, I'm about to share a link and source of inspiration. Wasn't that my plan all along?

Okay, so first up: Punky Scraps is a site I've only begun to loosely follow. I've gathered that they have a Friday Challenge and they seem to lean a bit more to the rough and tumble of life. This appeals to me. I focus most of my scrapping on my son and my husband. Both my husband and I have an affection for heavy metal and rock music. This week's challenge is to gain inspiration from this quote:



Oof! I know, but it appeals to me.

Next: Maximum Embellishment, is a blog by Sandi. I discovered her via the blog roll over at Bella's Creations. She has been frequently sharing THEE CUTEST Valentine images lately. I've marked a couple to use in cards pretty soon but I'll wait to disclose which when I see that I like how they turned out.

And: Frosted Designs has been putting forth amazing Friday Challenges all their very own. I just wish I was able to participate more often. This week's challenge is to use vellum, transparencies or acryllic on your project. For better details, check out their blog here.

Want a good laugh? Check out Hyperbole and a Half. Her blogs are the epitome of brilliance!

Sketches in Thyme has a gorgeous sketch this week:



Feel inspired? Create and share your page with Sketches In Thyme. Upload for a chance to win a really cool goodie package.

Kelly Goree shared a super cool link for a chance to win some embossed Coordinations card stock. Interested? Click on her name to learn more. Hurry! Your chances end with this evening.

And one final share: a blogger by the name of Bitch Cakes has been inspiring me and getting me to think more about my own food choices. She's a Weight Watcher and she reached Lifetime a while ago. This week she shared a great recipe for a new take on fries....using delicata squash. Looks good and I'm trying to find this variety in my own local produce sections so I can give it a try.

I don't know about you, but that's a lot of information, isn't it? I don't think I'll always have so many finds, but I'd say this is a pretty good start. Until next time!

Sibs

Good Afternoon! I know, it sorta seems like I'm a blogging fool, huh? If it worries you, rest assurred it's only temporary. I'm loving the reveals at Maya Road....and Prima....and Tim Holtz. In fact, I'd love to share my faves from Prima and Mr. Holtz soon, too. I've already warned my loving and supportive husband that there will be a time coming when I have a solid case of the "I wants".

Despite those moments, I DO have a page that I wanted to share and I FINALLY got out the camera and took a few photos of it. The main inspiration comes from a color challenge at Bella Creations -- use only blue, brown, beige and salmon. Salmon was the tricky color to come up with, but this is what I've created:



The paper is Bo Bunny Mama Razzi (still loving this line). It's based on a 2010 sketch from Page Maps. Since I'm kinda geeked that I got this photographed and ready to share, I've also missed the step in saving the exact sketch to my computer....and have temporarily forgotten exactly which month. My bad...

The photo is based on a much crisper scanned version my family received from extended branches a few weeks ago. I say "based on" because I thought I'd play a bit with the photo. It's printed on shimmery cardstock; so when you look at it in person it glitters. That was a complete accident but pretty all the same. The children in the photo are (left to right) my Aunt Carol, my Uncle Tom and my Dad. Of course, I had to zoom in on my Dad:



This little beauty is a piece of Dusty Attic chipboard. I won this (and many more astounding pieces) as blog candy from an amazing artist commonly known as CraftySprinkles. She also has an etsy (where you can get some amazing Dusty Attic all your own) right here. I inked this piece with Momento Ink. The piece beneath it is cut from the Bo Bunny Mamarazzi collection.



both flowers are Prima. The one below is a Winter Rose...that was too clean for this page. It was driving me nuts (especially since it was already well attached!) so I found a way to ink the petals (Distressed Ink) and add more sparkle with Distressed Stickles, Straw.



The title alphas are from Cosmo Cricket. Since they match the background so well, I tried to bring more attention to them with a couple Prima Pearls:



The blue flower was created with Prima white flowers (the ones that come in the long tube) and a mix of Glimmer Mist and Distressed Ink on the creases. I also added a Tim Holtz clock face to the center.



And finally, the flower/ribbon embellishment. It is a technique I learned on Helen Croft's blog:



.....And this is all I have for today! Luckily, I've been able to take quite a few photos of some fun family moments lately, so I hope to have even more to share in the weeks to come. But for now, I'm getting excited about a novel I'm reading. It's part of the Dresden Files, as written by Jim Butcher. I blame my husband for getting me hooked on the series...and I think he's okay with that. Maybe that's another page to create, huh?

More Maya Road?

Something tells me I need to take several photos of a mini I made last Summer. It started as an Ooh and Aah, when seeing Maya Road's coaster minis.

For Mother's Day, I snagged one of the home-shaped minis. Shortly afterward, I was offered an opportunity to interview for a job about 40 minutes from home. I already knew I could do everything they were asking of me and then some, so I was pretty confident. I also knew that, if I did get the job, I'd probably find myself missing my Little Guy and the fun we were having at home. To keep me distracted while waiting on a final post-interview decision, I filled that Maya Road mini with as many happy memories of home as possible. That way, I could take a little bit of home with me.

I didn't get the job, afterall, but I did have a cute little mini to tuck into my purse from that day on. I also sparked a love for the adorable-ness of Maya Road. Check out some more of the fun they have coming up next:







There's even more Amazing on their blog today. Go ahead and take a look.

Maya Road, How I Adore Thee!

Good Evening!

Still working on wanting to complete that title.

Still contemplating inking a Prima rose that's on another page for a challenge at Bella's Creations.

Still looking at a lot of awesome sneak peaks from some of my favorite companies. Tonight, I've been oohing and aahing over some new pieces from Maya Road. I'm looking forward to this particular mini:



My MIL loves birds and photographs eagles and hawks as often as she can. She also gets other birds, too. This would make a cute mini for her to put some of her favorite photos in, I think. Dress it up with some paint and paper with nature scenes.... Maybe even add some cute flowers, or a handmade "Knock Knock" sign above the opening and create a woodpecker to go on top....

I'm not able to snag their goodies often, but this, I love.

For the love of paper flowers!

Good Tuesday evening! I found a moment to do a simple blog. Mainly, it's a look at pretty flowers made of fabric and paper, as well as some pretty lace and buttons and sparkles. If you're already a lover of paper flowers, you have likely already seen the January Prima Product Pick:


I loved another blogger -- Micupoftea's -- suggestions for ink colors to use in projects with these beauties. Really, check out her blog and see all sorts of amazing ideas and beautiful thoughts!

Personally, I look at all of these beauties and imagine a small trinket-size version of a Hope Chest for a Spring Bride; maybe with some dew drops created on the petals. They certainly deserve to be seen daily!

OR...

Maybe even have some fun attaching them to some hair clips or combs. I've been on and off of that interest since this past summer -- attempting to create my own hair decor. Slowly, this is what I've come to realize about Prima flowers -- or really any created flower. It's a chance to find and utilize beauty in the least likely of resources. It's something that can be enjoyed for a long time. It's something that can be manipulated to meet one's own desires. There's little you CAN'T do with a paper flower; and I'm having fun trying.

So, what would you do?

Even if you're not sure, you can always click on the Prima link above, share their Product Pick on your own blog; repost THAT link on their blog and have a chance to win those beauties.

Imagine the possibilities.

Doh!

Popping in on my own blog to just make sure that I actually do post something for the week. Right now, I'm just hoping I'm able to post more than a simple statement that:


*I do have a blog nearly completed in draft form. It just needs a couple supremely important details.... like photos of what I've done.

*I do have a layout nearly completed to put in that drafted blog. It just needs a title created, painted, placed, and finally photographed.

*I have had a mildly busy and exciting week that has kept me from caring about making that infernally cute and cliche title. My lil three-and-a-half year old boy started yoga classes this past Tuesday, and starts a special story-hour tomorrow just before my husband and I head out on a promised overnight to relax and unwind. For that, we just needed a car that was drivable, thereby creating more stress and frustration.

But for now, I'm sleepy; my husband is awesome because he's done four loads of laundry today (even putting the clothes away!); we're ALL half-way packed for our adventures tomorrow; and....


Yeah....

Oh, hey! Before I shut down, I want to encourage you to take a moment and click on the badge at my right. It's for a new site, Bella's Designs. It's beautiful. It's fun. It's amazing. Check it out!

Dem Bones

Good Friday Evening! Just a simple post tonight. I had made a commitment last week to create a page based on this sketch:



And, while it's most definitely too late to enter into their weekly challenge, here's my take:



Last week, we took advantage of gifted tickets to the local children's museum. DS had the most fun assembling this rubber 2D skeleton. At first, it was the shortest li'l almost-human you ever did see. Once he saw that there were "extra parts," he worked on figuring out where they were supposed to go.

.....I should feel more chatty tonight, but I'm mainly just sleepy. I'm just beginning to feel my crafty groove return and this page is fairly self-explanatory.

The paper is Bo Bunny, Mama Razzi collection. The alphas are part of the pack; but I covered them with Distressed Stickles. Both skulls with crossbones (hinges, too!) are part of a Tim Holtz grunge board packages I've had for a couple years now. I painted them with Distress Crackle Paint and added a couple rub-ons on top for a bit of detail work.

If you took the time to look and read, I thank you. You're too kind! Now go, enjoy the rest of your evening and weekend with something REALLY fun!

Tanenbaums and Guest Design Team Reveals

Good Thursday Morning! How's the first week of a new year treating you? Happily, I'm starting to suspect I'm getting back into the swing of things. I even have a crafty project to share (and two more to finish up)! Wanna see it? Of course you do.

This is my first submission as a Guest Designer for Sketches In Thyme. It's based on this sketch from Jana Eubank.


By itself it's a beautiful sketch, isn't it? Here's my take:



Simply put, it's our Christmas tree this year. My son (three-and-a-half) had a lot of fun helping me place the ornaments. For a little while, those were the best three days of his life (because I purposely drag out decorating the tree for that long). The paper is almost entirely Graphic 45; Christmas Past and Renaissance Faire.



The three flowers and bronze flourish are handmade by Stephanie. You can find her Etsy here.

I cut a couple 12.1 strips from one of the G45 papers and played with a couple distressing techniques. I crumpled the strips until they were pliable, then golded and glued them down to look like pleats. I also inked the folds in the pleats and stapled them down.


Sorry you have to tilt to look! At the bottom of my pleated paper, I attached an origami Christmas tree. I saw this tutorial on Practical Scrappers in November and swore I was going to try it. Fun and easy! The paper is from an old-ish pack of K & Company with Stickled red ornaments all over the place.



The title piece is a combination of Technique Tuesday chipboard (died with a mixture of Glimmer Mists and water on wax paper), older K & Company paper, Prima bling and Stickled accents.

And that's all I have for today. Be sure to check out all the amazing pages based on this sketch at Sketches In Thyme! Create one yourself! I look forward to seeing what everyone makes.