Gingerbread people banner by Lynne

Hi there! I had so much fun creating my little gingerbread house album a few weeks back  that I decided to create a coordinating banner using the same papers with the adorable little gingerbread people from Gina's. When I set up my Christmas decorations in a couple weeks I'll display them together.

I painted the figures with light brown acrylic paint then sponged them with a reddish brown for a lightly mottled "baked cookie" effect. The clothes were cut from paper and attached to the chipboard clothing bases then I added little embellishments and details. I used a pearl pen for the icing lines here and there.The snowflakes are from the Winter shape set and were primed with gesso then painted with pearl acrylic paint. The candies are from the gingerbread house mini album package. I painted them deep red then mounted them onto cardstock which was painted with the same pearl paint as the snowflakes.

I just attached everything to a piece of green jute for a simple homespun feel. Check out the crazy red feather hair on the little girl in the lower photo - I had some fun with the details!!

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderfully creative week!

Gina's Items Used

Gingerbread family shape set

Gingerbread house mini album set-pinwheel candies

Winter shape set-snowflakes

DREAM - Word Art by Lynne

Hello there and happy Monday! Yeah I know, a lot of people think those two words don't belong together, but as long as you have a dream in your heart, every day can have at least a little bit of "happy" in it! I created this piece with word art by Gina to remind me of that on days when I need a little boost.

After painting the edges of the piece, I covered each letter with patterned paper from the beautiful Prima Royal Menagerie collection and then sanded the edges with Sandits before inking them. The base was also covered with coordinating paper.

The sand dollar from Gina's Beach Shape Set was covered with homemade texture paste (I spread it with my finger to keep it from going into the cutout parts-I love to get myself messy!) and the starfish was spread with sand paste made up of sand, white glue and acrylic paint.

 

I added tulle to the base behind the word to showcase the paper butterflies which were attached to  pearl sprays. The dragonfly and shells are Prima resin pieces which were dry-brushed with acrylic paint. Some ribbon roses and pearls completed the project.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I hang onto your dreams. My wish for you is that all the very best ones come true!

Gina's Products Used

Beach Shape Set

Stand Up Sentiments-Dream 

Other Products Used

Prima Royal Menagerie papers

Prima resin pieces

Kaisercraft Enchanted Garden paper (butterflies)

Follow your Dreams/Fudan - Layout by Lynne

Greetings from Shanghai! No, I'm not there, I'm still here in Ontario Canada, but my son is there at Fudan University and this layout features one of the photos he sent me. It was taken in one of the gorgeous garden areas on the grounds there and I couldn't wait to play with the Oriental Shape Set I ordered from Gina's knowing that Graham would be sending me photos!

I painted the pagoda with acrylic paint then heat-embossed it with UTEE to create an enameled look, then added the Asian coins. The two at the back are actual coins which I found in a Chinese shop in Toronto a few years ago and the top one is a brad that I removed the back from.

I covered the Asian lady piece with some embossed paper I found at a stationery shop ages ago and have been hoarding...uh I mean SAVING... for the right project.

 

The red of the paper actually matches the paint and the hand-stitching a lot more closely than it appears to here in the photo.

Some lovely Prima flowers tiny crocheted doilies and die-cut foliage complete the effect; since the papers are quite busy I tried to keep the added details down to allow the photo and the red elements to really stand out-thanks so much for stopping by; I'm sure there will be more projects coming up using some of my son's great photos and I hope you enjoy sharing his year-long adventure with me!

Gina's Items Used

Oriental Shape Set

Other Items Used

FabScraps Cherished papers

Prima Royal Menagerie flowers

UTEE

embroidery floss

Gingerbread Memories-mini album by Lynne

Hi! Yeah, yeah- I know it's only October and Halloween isn't even over with, but I am a Christmas girl through and through and as soon as I saw this adorable little chipboard album from Gina's I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it!

Ever year when my kids were little I'd bake gingerbread houses for them to decorate, and once they started school I made a bunch and had a "gingerbread party" for them and their friends the second Saturday of every December.

The cute little windows, fence, candy canes and swirly candies were all included in the album package as well as the icicle trim along the roof. I used texture paste on that piece and simply painted all the others, except for one snowflake which was heat-embossed. I covered the album itself with patterned paper then sanded and inked the edges. The door I attached in a way that it would open (made holes and tied them with embroidery floss) and then put photos of my son and daughter decorating their houses inside.

Dies, punches ribbon and a whole bunch of fussy cutting completed the project, which will be a special keepsake for my family now that both kids are grown up and out on their own.

The rest of the album pages can be seen on my personal blog.


Thanks so much for stopping by and remember that it's never too early for Christmas crafting; in fact I think the world would be a much happier place if we could hang onto our Christmas spirits all year long! Have a great day!
Gina's Products Used

Gingerbread house mini album 
Snowflake shape set

BOO! Halloween Wall Decor

Hi there and happy October! Lynne here with a Halloween-themed project. I'm not especially big on Halloween, but as soon as I saw this piece with the awesomely scary kitty I knew I had to play with it! Gina always manages to come up with something so unique and creative for every occasion, season and crafting style!

I covered the "31" portion of the piece with patterned paper sanded the edges using the wonderful and handy Sandits tools; they're like a big Q-tip and are so much easier to use than trying to get into small areas with a hunk of sandpaper! You can find out more about them here:  http://www.sandits.com

I then used crackle finish over the paper and inked it lightly to make the cracks show up more and inked the edges a little more heavily.

The raven was painted black with acrylic paint  then embossed with clear embossing powder; he looks much shinier in person than he does here.
                                    

I used flocking to add furry texture to the cat and here's a word of advice from me which is tried and true many times over....always ALWAYS (as in every single time!) paint your item in the colour of your flocking before you add it-no matter how careful you are there are sometimes thin spots where the colour of your chipboard might show through a little, but if it's painted no one will be any the wiser-trust me on this one!!

I also painted the pumpkin and the cornstalk with a acrylic paints then drew on a few details for added realism. The letters at the bottom were simply attached to a piece of jute which I tied onto the project.

Thanks a bunch for stopping by-this project has me thinking about pumpkins now so I just may have to pop down to the nearby roadside stand to grab a few-some for decorating and at least one to make yummy pumpkin pies out of! Have a super day!

Gina's Designs Items Used
31 Wall Art (coming soon!)
Fall Shape Set

Other Items Used
Ranger Crackle paint-Rock Candy
Black ink
acrylic paints
 black flocking
clear embossing powder

"CREATE"-Altered Paint Palette

Hello my crafty and creative friends! Lynne here with an altered wooden paint palette. I've seen seen some beautiful projects made using these and decided it would be fun to try using some of the unique and interesting chipboard pieces from Gina's.

I primed the palette with gesso, then arranged  and attached the chipboard, corrugate, flowers, metal, paintbrush and stenciling with texture paste before adding a second coat of gesso.  I then painted the entire surface with metallic silver acrylic paint before using Twinkling H20s to create a rainbow of colour on my project.

Afterwards I added a few clusters of mica flakes for sheen and a bit of different texture. This was such a fun project to create, giving me a chance to mix and match all sorts of goodies, and I love the effect of the paints over the silver background! Thanks so much for stopping by, and hope you have a wonderfully creative week!

Gina's Designs Items Used

Steampunk Lightbulb set

Gear Borders and Corners Miniature

Gears Shape Set

Butterflies and Dragonflies

Other Items Used

ColourArte Twinkling H20s

Metallic silver acrylic paint

Prima and Crafter's Workshop stencils

Metal gears and shapes

misc. flowers and embellishments

Catch your Dreams Canvas

Hi crafty people! This week I decided to create a mixed media canvas with a quote from a sheet of Kaisercraft "Be-YOU-tiful" paper and lots of awesome Gina's goodies.

 After figuring out where I wanted everything, I added the stenciling, primed the canvas and all the pieces were covered with gesso, and then glued them on. I then painted the entire project with gold acrylic paint before adding several different colours of mist. Some I dried between colours and others I didn't. This created a marbled effect in some spots. I also dabbed at some areas with a wad of paper towel to create a mottled effect and remove larger spots of mist. To define the edges a bit more, I dry brushed the pieces with black acrylic paint.

After everything was dry, I slid the quote into place (I had glued only the top of the arrow one side of the flowers, and only part of the key so this would be possible). I had a great time putting this together and getting messy with the mist and paint was so much fun! Have yourself a terrific weekend and be sure to find time to get messy!

Gina's Designs Items Used

Balloons-Birthday Shape Set

Cardstock Doily Set 1

Wooden Decorative Keys

Texture Sheet Flourished

Other Items Used

Kaisercraft Be-YOU-tiful paper

gold and black acrylic paints

misc spray mists

Tim Holtz metal arrow

Prima metal shape

Prima and Crafter's Workshop stencils

"Lily" - a Layout With Gina's Designs and The Robin's Nest

When I saw the warm orange tones in these lovely papers from The Robin's Nest, my very first thought was autumn, but I'm really not quite ready to think about that yet, as I'm still really really enjoying summer. My second thought, though, was my beautiful calico kitty, Lily (short for Princess Tiger Lily) who has a wonderful mix of orange tones in her markings.

I loved that the two sheets of paper were identical except for the shade, so I layered them where the patterns would line up closely, after tearing, distressing and inking the edges (with layers of Ranger ink in Spiced Marmalade and Gathered Twigs)

I wanted to use the Deco Lattice Panel as a frame, but since I didn't want to cover up the gorgeous lattice, I cut it out and used pieces of it as embellishments peeking out from the layers of paper. The frame was painted with acrylics then a design stamped with Versamark ink was added with clear embossing powder. The lattice pieces were painted, then entirely embossed in a clear finish

The cats were painted with acrylics, then rubbed with 3 shades of metallic Gelatos for a "calico" sort of effect-I love these cute kitty shapes!

Stenciling with homemade texture paste , some random strips of punchwork and a few cute flowers just about finished the page...then I added a few Dew Drops from The Robin's Nest and-voila-all done! They're so much fun and come in an amazing variety of colours, along with Dew Dew Glue, which are tiny little adhesive dots made especially for these itty-bitty embellishments.

Thanks heaps for stopping by today; have a wonderful week and I hope you find some time to create!

Gina's Products Used

Deco Lattice Panel 1

Cats shape set

Robin's Nest Products Used

Honeycomb Fleur cardstock

Dew Drops

Dew Dew Glue

.

Elegant Chic Trim Organizer

Even though I'm not exactly the most organized person in the world in a lot of ways, I LOVE organizers!! Lynne here with my version of the trim organizer from Gina's store. My scraproom is painted pale grey, so these FabScraps papers were perfect for this project.

After assembling the box (which is delightfully easy!) and papering it all, I sanded the edges, then inked them with Ranger distress ink in Weathered Wood. After adding a strip of lace and the word tag, I painted the Feathery Flourishes and the wooden beads (which were used for feet) with acrylic paint and attached them, then finished the project with strands of clear iridescent pearls.

The cards were papered and inked with the same products, then I had fun filling them with some gorgeous laces and trims from my stash (which incidentally freed up a drawer for more chippies! yay me!)

I kept the decoration of my organizer fairly simple, but the sky's the limit! You could use any papers or mediums to cover it, and you could add all sorts of different embellishments to create any look you want. I hope you stop by Gina's store to have a look at this and other great organizers! Have a terrific week!

Gina's Products Used

Trim Organizer

Feathery Flourishes set

Other Products Used

FabScraps papers

Ranger ink-weathered wood

Wooden beads

acrylic paint

pearl strands

Just Be Yourself - Cross Promotion With ColourArte

This is Lynne and I had so much fun creating this colourful canvas! I love quotes and I love mixed media, and both Gina's and ColourArte's products worked together perfectly to create this.

I prepped the chipboard pieces with gesso, then painted each section of the canvas in splotches with either Silks or Twinkling H2Os  to emulate the splotches in the printed quote, then black paint drips finished it off.

I love that the paints covered all the different textures so well-the lace, chipboard and texture paste as well as the florals and the metal embellishments.I'm crazy about the new Lace Border Sticks and have a feeling I'm going to want to use them on everything!

Thanks so much for stopping by-just be yourself and have a wonderfully colourful week!

Gina's Products Used

Lace Border Sticks

Butterflies and Dragonflies

Spring Shape Set

Miniatures Shape Set-Guy Thing

Other Products Used

Twinkling H20s

Silks

Prima Flowers and Metals

Believe in Magic: an Art Journal Page With Gina's Designs and ColourArte

Lynne here with an art journal page. As soon as I saw the new Dragon Shapes Set, I knew I HAD to play with one right away. I figured if I believe in dragon magic, why shouldn't I believe in fairy magic too, right?! Makes perfect sense to moi....

 I had originally planned on saving the ColourArte goodies to use on a canvas for next week, but after I ran the dragon through an embossing folder and got a look at the awesome texture, I had a brainstorm and decided I wanted to see what the colours and shimmer of the paints would look like on these pieces.

I layered the Ginger Peach Silkswith splotches of twinkling H20s in Orange Peel and Deep Coral,and I love the effect it created.

The brick panel and loose bricks were coated in a light layer of texture paste before I added the paints, which created a little more dimension.

I didn't get a chance to try out all of the yummy colours in my ColourArte goodie bag, so look for another project from me next week incorporating them as well-most likely something featuring a whole rainbow of colours! Thanks so much for stopping by and have yourself a magical week!

Gina's Designs Items Used

Dragons Shape Set

Garden Fairies Small

Brick wall

ColourArte Products 

Silks-Ginger Peach

Twinkling H20s-Deep Coral, Orange Peel

Other Items Used

BoBunny Juliet papers and embellishments

Donna Salazar Inks

Botanical Tea-Birthday card and tag

Hi, Lynne here with a card and tag made with the lovely Graphic 45 Botanical Tea collection and Gina's Birthday Shape Set and Spring Shape Set. Two of my good friends have July birthdays and this card was made for one of them and included a "voucher" for girls' lunch out one day soon.

I covered the lower part of the chipboard cupcake with pleated paper top create the look of a baking cup, then used texture paste for the "icing", on which I sprinkled glass glitter. The candle was painted with acrylic paints and the flame was created with cheesecloth and Gelatos. The sentiment was painted with pearlized acrylic paint then rubbed lightly with pink paint along the top.

Here's the inside of the card; I used a fun pop-up design.

Continuing the theme of the Botanical Tea papers, I used a bird and a dragonfly from the Spring Shape Set. The bird was covered with patterned paper and then I added a wing with foam tape and inked the edges. The dragonfly was painted with pearlized paint then lightly rubbed with wedgewood blue paint.

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a terrific week!

Gina's Items Used

Birthday Shape Set

Spring Shape Set

Other Items Used

Graphic 45 Botanical Tea paper pack

acrylic paints

spanish moss

cheesecloth

glass glitter 

texture paste

A Creative Life - Art Journal Page

Hi, Lynne here! I had a blast putting this lively page together. Gina's Mixed Media Fragments were such a great help!

I belong to an art journaling group that meets once a month, and June's word prompt was "create" or any variation on the word. I love this quote and to me it sums up  paper crafting...there is no wrong because there are no rules and no mistakes! I painted the fragments with acrylic paint then stenciled onto them with my beloved homemade texture paste.

Journal pages ideally should remain fairly flat, but I always find room for a few goodies and a bit of dimension! (no rules, remember!) I did some misting, paint spattering and brushing, stamping, stenciling, printing, gluing, sticker-sticking (and the white strips are drywall tape) There was not much that I didn't try on here. Remember next time you create, there is no wrong in paper crafting - just have fun and make art!!

Gina's Designs Products Used: 
Mixed Media Fragments 2