Hello darlings!

Hello hello hello darlings, I know it's been AGES since I dissapeared, but, things happen, then I lost my mojo, then, well, I haven't actually found it but I 'm coming around slowly.

My first project after sooo long seemed like a true feat to me, I didn't know what I had in my stash (or where exactly was everything) or how to use it (lol!). So, after a lot of search and trial and error, I managed to finish this:

It is a tumbler from Starbucks, the one that has a sort of template paper inside so that you can personalize it, it costs about €9, I thought it would be a nice idea for a cheap but cute gift for a friend of mine.

Don't ask me how I did it, it is all a blur, I remember stamping like crazy, using distress inks like a lunatic and addding TONS of glittery stuff, trust me, it was SCARY!

The actual finished project:

And a close up (lovely Sarah Kay):

That's it for now, I hope you 're all well and thriving, see ya (hopefully in this century!).

Project: Christmas Tree

All these lovely christmas projects, cards, etc that I see in your blogs made me realize I was wayyyy behind my christmas preparations, so I started with something very easy, fun and quick: a little flourish wooden tree by Kaisercraft. Sorry for the lousy photos but I couldn't take a decent one no matter what!

I made it for my office at work and I wanted a really lively and sparkly result, (can't you tell that I'm a traditional all red-green christmas girl?)LOL

The execution was quite simple:
- colored the trunk with copic markers
- colored the tree with distress inks except the flowers, birds etc. that I colored with copic markers
- sprayed the lot with the water-Perfect Pearls mix
- adhered Martha Stewart's microbeads on the flame and the flowers
- and finally covered the birds lightly and randomly with white glitter

 Here's a close up

Last touch, I used tiny pearls for the eyes of the larger birds and...ready!

Rania's Layouts: June 2010

Hi ladies, it's been an awful week because I was sick with gastric flu (gastroenteritis) but yesterday I felt ok, so I thought, time to do something pleasant and creative but relatively simple and quick. So, here's a LO!

I just used a decorated paper with a lot of  patterns, added the photos, cut the title on pink foam, a little journaling, a little doodling (lower right corner) and ready!

For the focal decorational piece I chose a cherry blossom (Inkadinkado clear stamp) because it sort of matched the cherry blossom on my niece's shirt, I spiced it up with a little glitter.

This is the last LO in my niece's first album, so I adhered on the inside of the back cover a little something I made, I used Precious Moments images I found online, I put them in place using Photoshop, printed it and colored them with my copics. Aren't they cute?

Project:: Shadow frame

I bought a couple of shadow frames at IKEA, so I used one right away for a photo of my niece (who else???) 

The photo is from Karpenissi, where she rode a horse with her mother, for the first time and he was sooo thrilled!

What I did in order to acieve a 3d look is that I printed the photo twice and then I cut out from the second photo my niece and the head horse and adhered them on the whole photo with 3d foam dots. You can't see it here, but it really made the difference.

Then I adhered the photo on a white cardstock and colored on it so as to "expand" the view and then I added the decorative pieces, they were adhered on 3d dot stacks I made and I also varied the depth.

Here I colored the front piece of a horse drawing and adhered it on the project right next to the back of a real one that was in the photo, so as the horse will look whole. I aslo added some glitter on the mane.

I made the "branches" by stamping with the same stamp on various cardstock and paper pieces, and then accented the flowers with Stickles and...ready!

Project: Fairy Mirror

A while ago I had purchased a plain wood mirror from IKEA, I wasn't quite sure how I would alter it but I bought it anyway. So, when Easter was approaching, I thought to make a fairy mirror to give to my niece as a special Easter gift for her new room. Here it is!

 First of all, I chose my least favorite cheap Penguin paperback, tore a few pages in pieces and colored them with distress inks.

Then I covered the wood with Claudine Helmuth's Matte Multi Medium and put the pieces in place. Then I coated it with another layer of the medium where I had added a drop of Tattered Rose distress ink so as to have a lightly tinted pink glaze.

I had already colored with my copics some fairy images I found online

I also added some stickles, accented the edges with the Pumice Stone distress ink and then adhered them on the mirror. Then I covered the lot with another coat of the Matte medium where I had also added a drop of pink distress ink. The execution was somewhat cumbersome because the brush left pink streaks on the images, next time I will use a Making Memories foam brush instead.
Then I added some random splashes of glitter on the mirror and adhered the embellishments: I made the little pink blossoms with heating with my heat gun some round pieces of pink tulle so as to have this effect.
I had already stamped the butterflies on a clear acetate sheet and colored them with my copics, I adhered them on the mirror using Ranger's Glossy Accents, I also covered the top of the body with it and before it was all dry I sprinkled it with glitter.
Last step, I colored the plain chipboard letters with distress inks, I also sprinkled them with glitter and adhered them on the mirror with foam squares.
A trully fairy mirror, fit for a little fairy princess!

Card Making: Easter Card #2 and Shaker Box Tutorial

I liked my first shaker card so much that I decided to make another one, I'm so glad you liked it too girls!
Here's the finished card:

And the little bunny in the spotlight! (LOL)

So let's start:
1) I prepared the parts of the card, that is I cut a window in my card (after coloring it with distress inks, stamping on the inside and spraying the front with the water-Perfect Pearls mix, you know, the works). I also cut an oval shape about 1/4 of an inch larger than my focal image (freeby bunny that I printed and colored with my copics) and cut the acetate piece also at 1/4 of an inch larger than my focal image. I also cut a scallop frame.

2) Tip #1: I found this mesh like thing at Jumbo and I tried to use it with distress inks (on a piece of pattern cardstock I had already cut with the MS Trellis border punch) in order to make a pattern, really cool result!

 3) Then I cut tiny thick foam pads in half and adhered them around the acetate piece, thank god I remembered to remove the protective sheet first! (LOL)

4) Tip #2. Do you like chunky glitter? I do nowdays but don't have any. So I made some!!! This is how:
I used two small leftovers from the acetate piece I had cut and covered them with Ranger's Glossy Accents. Then I covered the one with green Flowersoft and the other with glitter and did the same on the other side too. I left them to dry for half and hour and then cut them randomly in tiny pieces. How cool is that??? Especially the gliter ones are awesome in real life!

5) I put them inside the acetate frame and then adhered on top the colored image facing down, sealing the tiny pieces inside the shaker box.

6) Next step, I adhered it on the card window using Ranger's Glossy Accents on the perimeter and I colored the back so as to be more uniform with the inside of the card.

Finally I adhered the borders and the flowery Happy Easter and...ready!