Page 102 – Loretta Rodger

Shrinky Dinks — Embellishments!our Christmas tree and more!!

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Hello everyone,

I hope that each of you has had a joyous Christmas season and are looking forward to a wonderful new year filled with hope, dreams and many blessings.

I needed some more embellishments for my day to day scrapbooking and stamping projects. I decided to sit down and make some. I used Shrinky Dink brand shrink plastic, available at most big box stores. The stamps are inked up with Staz On Black ink and stamped on one side, flipped over and colored on the opposite side. Once the coloring is complete, trim them closely with scissors. When trimming these images it is important to note that it is easier and you get a much more professional result by moving the material and not the scissors so much.

I have been enjoying some time to just create these last few days. Now that Christmas projects are out of the way and I even have a re-newed passion to start the handmade Christmas gifts earlier in the year for 2013, I must say I’m feeling very crafty!

I am participating in a Valentine tag swap and have gotten a nice start on the project. The bird is just a small part of what the swap will be when it is completed. I haven’t decided how much of this to preview as of yet. So, that means you need to “Stay tuned” for more information.

I have been wanting an embellishment type center from Recollections. When I saw the one at the store it seemed much to big for the space I had reserved for a small shelving unit. I shopped around and found the one above at scrapbook.com. It is an much smaller shelving system than Michael’s, and I love the scalloped edge. I also like the fact that I can place dies that I am using the most within reach of my sizzix big shot.

If you would like a current and up-to-date list of the dies I currently own please email me at Ms.Rhetta@gmail.com. I’ll be happy to send you the list as an email attachment. I do sale die cuts at a reasonable price, please contact me for those quotes as well.

I have some very special plans for video tutorials. I haven’t posted one in quiet a while, and hope that once our Christmas tree has been taken down and the ornaments, lights and decorations have been put away I will have time to do just that. Remember, you can also email me with suggestions of what type of video tutorials you would like me to record.

I pray you all will be safe in the New Year. Stamp Happy my friends and be a blessing!

embossing folder storage — my new solution

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In my insane attempt to become better organized, and dare I say actually know where things are and what I have I have begun a journey.

No it isn’t the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. It is the journey of thousands of stamps, a hundred twenty (something) embossing folder, dies, well everything really to be not only organized, easily accessible but actually have some resemblance of making sense.

I purchased the embossing folder storage from Crafter’s Companion. Item number is CN2033-994-1 . Orders over $50.00 ship for free. They also have amazing prices on EZ mount foam and storage panels, I will show you my new magnetic storage panels from them at a later time.

It has taken some time to cut out 3 X 4 ” pieces of card stock and run them through my Big Shot. When each of the storage folders where complete, the embossed samples were hole punched and labeled with the book they are in. Now I can simply go to these small samples and I know instantly where to find the perfect folder for my project.

Next up, I hope to go through all of my rubber stamps, cling, clear, all of them. I want to completely re-catagorise them, so they make logical scense.

For the binders I keep my magnetic storage panels and rubber stamps in, please visit UniKeep, they have the same size containers as Crafter’s Companion but they do not have the spendy price tag. I am not affiliated in any way with either of these companies, These are simply references to two sources I have found supplies that offer excellent customer service, reasonable if not free shipping and the items arrive within a few days.

My thoughts and prayers are with the families and the community affected by the massive shooting and loss of lives in Connecticut.

Stamp happy, love and support your children. Be a blessing!

VERY Large canvas 14″ X 18″

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A couple of side notes on today’s project.

Chadman has been working on some major school projects so the picture you see of him sitting at the computer desk was taken while he was frankly tired of working. He pulled through and met his homework goals for today!

I have been encouraged greatly by my sister in law, Deb to go big, really big. She would love for me to do a really large canvas. Maybe one day. I had determined I would at least go one size up from the 8″X10″ one that I completed yesterday.

Here is a similar picture I found on google search today.

I visited my local craft store and bought the 14″X18″ canvas. I had seen a print of some owls on a branch.

My goal was not to copy the piece in anyway, but use it as my inspiration. My first inspiration was to use the Accucut die “Owls” as my center focal point. I cut the owls from medium weight chipboard.

The larger of the two owls is actually covered in some old book page before it was painted. The smaller owl is simply covered with a piece of adorable scrap booking paper I had in my collection.

I began this process early this morning around 11:30 am. I finished it (for now) at around 9:45pm. I bet you’re wondering “finished for now” what is that supposed to mean.

Well, you see, when you catch the altering bug there is a point where you can’t get enough of the project. You keep adding to it until you like the result. If you don’t like it, repaint it with white paint and carry on!

I wanted lots of textures and color in this project. I will be gifting this mixed media project. Once it is done I will seal it with a light protective clear mat glaze. It needs to be completely dry. Which will happen while sitting over night.

Here is the video slide show of the process. I hope you enjoy the Cheerful Christmas music! My birthday is Saturday the 15th of December. I am going to be celebrating it with Chad and I’m sure we’ll have a wonderful time together.

Thanks for stopping by. Stamp Happy and be a blessing!

Merry Christmas!

8 X 10″ altered canvas

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Ode to a mess!

I love to art journal, I can and some times do spend hours watching You Tube how to art journal tutorials, or do some research on color and texture mediums so I can at least play with some knowledge of how these type of materials work together.

Today’s art journal project started off much differently, It doesn’t show up well on the pictures or the scan, however, there is a lot of texture on this project. I used an old dress making pattern and some Stucco medium for the bottom base of this project. The more I worked with this canvas the more it “Spoke” to me.

I am having a wonderful day playing with this medium! I really need to get my things together and go to the post office, Christmas is in two weeks, my birthday is Saturday and….

My precious Michael may be home in time for Christmas. He will have to re-deploy shortly there after, but home for a few weeks is better than notta! I am not counting those chickens until they hatch, I don’t want to get overly excited and have the dream bubble burst.

Have a great crafty day! Stamp Happy and be a blessing!

stunning red and black ornament

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I must admit that even though I am a big fan of anything Stamping, I haven’t been a big fan of Stampin Up products since they shot themselves in the foot and re-did all their color families. Not a fan. I don’t even buy their card stock any more. Used to be you would look at a color that wasn’t even remotely related to the Stampin Up line and you’d exclaim “That’s Real Red” or what ever color that you need to finish up your project and have it coordinate perfectly.

I used the Stampin up Ornament dies to cut out the pieces for the ornament from Black and Red card stock. The snowflake topper is an Alterations snowflake, that is topped with a faceted stick pin. I used lace from my personal collection to finish off the ornament.

I’m proud to say that I am finished with the handmade gifts that I wanted to make, today I’m going to focus on an 8 X 10 canvas that I am calling “Discover a new beginning”. I’ll try and take some pictures for a future blog post.

Have a terrific day. Stamp Happy and be a blessing.