10 Things About Me Today...

1. I took pics of my new paper & now the computer
won't recognize my memory card.

2. My recent late night treat has been yummy
Starbucks ice cream...sigh.

3. It's supposed to rain today, and I love it when it
rains...hate the nervousness that some storms bring tho.

4. Seriously, I need to do some cleaning & organizing.

5. Looking forward to the series finale of LOST on
Sunday, but sad at the same time...

6. My sis whipped out 3 cute layouts in no time flat
last night, & since we're slightly competitive, I need to
get my hiney in there & scrap!

7. Seems I need to make a major grocery run, along with
picking up some yarn, spray paint, & a punch I'm kicking
myself for not getting (bet you're wondering what projects I
have up my sleeve, huh?)

8. I want to see The Last Song & Letters to Juliet...btw,
Date Night was hilarious!

9. Loving the smell of Twilight Woods hand sanitizer by
BBW...(gotta stop that hand sniffing tho, ppl are starting to
stare).

10. Always inspired by HER creativity and recently by
THIS incredible layout, THIS cutsie shirt, & THIS gorgeous
mini along with those yummy stamps...

Thanks for stopping by! Tell me something about you!

Handmade Shabby Chic Flowers

Handmade flowers, and those made by popular scrapbook companies like THESE by Prima, have become very popular.  Since buying more than a few of them would probably set me back a small fortune, I was inspired to make something similar myself and used supplies I had on hand. 

 Supplies needed:

 Glimmer Mist (I used Patina)

permanent adhesive runner

sturdy paper or cardstock

scissors

light colored ribbon

tissue paper

aluminum foil

To start, cut a circle out of the cardstock slightly bigger than you would like your flower to be.  You can free-hand them, since they don't have to be perfect.  Next, cut your tissue paper into 2 or 3 long strips.  I did mine about 1 1/2 inches the first time and 2 1/2 inches the second.  The wider your tissue paper, the more depth to your flowers (so if you plan to scrapbook with them & don't care for a lot of bulk, go skinny with them).  Apply adhesive all over your circle.

Twist your tissue paper until it looks like this and adhere it to the center of the flower.

Continue to twist and stick, twist and stick all the way around the circle.  If you run out of tissue paper before you are finished, continue with a new piece where you left off making sure to hide any edges if you can.

Use your thumb to flatten out the flower & help the tissue paper to stick.

When you have the size flower you desire, tightly wind the end of the tissue paper and slightly tuck it under the outside edge of flower between the flower and cardstock.  Cut around the flower to remove the excess cardstock. 

Position your flower on your foil and spray with glimmer mist about 3 times or so.  If you desire a darker shade, allow your flower to dry more and respray.  If you saturate it too much, it will want to unwind.

I chose sheer ribbon for this next step, but any light color would work.  Simply wad up your ribbon and dip and smear it into the glimmer mist.  Fold your foil over and seal off the edges so none of the mist leaks out.

Wad the foil up with the ribbon inside and set aside for a bit.  When you remove it, it may still be a bit damp.  If you want it to stay a bit crinkled, open it up and leave it alone until it dries.

After using the satin ribbon on my Seattle layout, I decided to pick up a couple more spools at Michael's (aka Mike's) 50% off sale on Sunday.  The color of the ribbon inspired me to create some matching embellishments.

So what do you think? Kinda spiffy, huh? I can't wait to create another page with them, hopefully for that vacation album!

Candy Break

Several of my scrappy pals and I have committed to complete 31 pages in May, and unfortunately I had only finished 2 as of early this morning.  Well, move over, Gloria, because I'm gaining on you.  I woke up this morning determined to create a page, and I actually scrapped my first layout for our Seattle vacation album from...ahem...2008.  Yeah, I've been putting it off and "saving" the pictures and products until I knew I could do them justice.  What do you think of my first creation for this album?

Here's a close-up of my satin bow...I love the poof satin ribbon gives a good bow.  I used my ATG gun to adhere this to the layout as well:

I like to bend and fold the edges of parts of my background paper and then ink them.  For this look, I did that and created a little rip about 1 1/2 inches into my paper.  I inked the edges, rolled them back and forth to make them soft and inked a bit more:

I inked the front side of this paper scrap and used my ATG tape gun to adhere it behind the tear:

All products besides the ink and pen are from Making Memories (mostly from the Passport line).  Thanks for stopping by to check out my vacation creation...hehehe that rhymed...anyhoo, I hope to have at least one or two more layouts to add to my total by Monday.  I'll keep you posted. ;o)

Saturday Junkin' Finds

Last Saturday, we spent the morning running to a few yard sales in the neighborhood.  I'm not one of those people that load up every. single. weekend. to find carloads full of stuff....that's just not me.  I mostly just stop places here and there when I see a sale that catches my eye.  On this particular day of junkin', I found several things for others and was afraid I wouldn't find any yummy vintage goodies for myself.  Luckily, I did find some things that made me happy.  Here are most of them...

Drapery fabric can be VERY pricey sometimes, and the one in the middle will match my kitchen perfectly:

Some Baby-sitters Little Sister books for a sweet young reader I know:

Can you tell we love books? These audio books are for long hours on the road:

Now for my fab finds...this vintage, PINK organizer to put scrappy embellishments in. Isn't it wonderful?

Check out that satin quilting!

"Dream House Closet Accessories"

How stinkin' cute is that name?

My other favorite find of the day was my Hobnail Milk Glass Lamp

...AND it actually works! I used it while I was scrapbooking the other night!

Shouldn't all lamps come with cute key-looking switches?

After a little cleaing, that milky glass was so sparkly and shiny....I LOVE it!

Thanks so much for stopping by! I love your comments & would love to hear about things you collect.  Also, thanks to all of you who became followers...you made my day! :o)

How to start scrapbooking...

One reason I didn't start to scrapbook before I did was because I had this idea that scrapbooking was too expensive.  Granted, if you don't make smart purchases and limit your scrap collecting, it can get out of hand. 

Many mixed opinions are out there about what tools and supplies are actually needed to get your scrap on.  When my friend, Candace, and I decided on a whim to start scrapbooking, we went to Hobby Lobby when they had one of their famous 50% off sales and split a lot of supplies to save on cost. 

Here is a list of what supplies I have found I
cannot (well, actually I really could if I tried hard)
scrap without (I'm adding links of examples):

1. Paper trimmer - I've tried several different kinds & still haven't found one I'm 100% happy with

2. Good, double-sided adhesive - i used photo tabs at first, then double-sided tape, and now have the red ATG framing tape gun (probably the best scrappy purchase I've made besides a trimmer & I use generic tape...it costs more in the beginning but saves in the long run)

3. 3-4 Neutral colors of cardstock - I have more, but find I most often use kraft, white, black (& cream)

4. 1 or 2 Good quality paper collection packs that you absolutely LOVE - don't buy paper only b/c it's cheap....you'll kick yourself later & in the end be much more pleased overall by using what you love  (wonderful examples are basic grey, october afternoon, cosmo cricket, k & company, & my mind's eye)

5. self-healing mat like the magnetic mat by basic grey (or a sewing one would work well)

6. craft or exacto knife - like Fiskars softgrip

7. small, sharp scissors for detailed cutting or trimming

8. alphabet - either stamps, chipboard letters (Thickers), or alphabet stickers in white, brown, black to start

9. a neutral ink pad (black or brown maybe...I'd avoid pigment at first, b/c it takes forever to dry) - I love my colorbox cateye ink stack in chocolate and blueberries

10. neutral set of stamps that you LOVE - think journaling blocks, alphas, flowers, butterflies, or flourishes (if you buy acrylic, you can use a cd case to put them on to stamp at the beginning)

11.  neutral (notice the theme here?) ribbon - think black, brown, white, cream, pink in solids or with polk-a-dots in white or something....I find these are the ones I reach for the most, even with tons of other ribbon

12. paper piercer - you can use other things or scissors for this, but it works great for adding brads

13. stapler with longer reach base (think office stapler) - to attach ribbon, papers, etc.

14. brads - metal, brushed nickel, white, etc - great for holding stuff down, using as center for flowers, etc.

15. maybe 2 pairs of deco scissors (think scalloped/pinking shears) or a simple scalloped punch like Fiskars threading water/apron lace/scallop punches

16. Archival quality journaling pens in black, brown, white (I have others, but use basically only use these)

17. Glossy Accents - great for adhering almost anything

18. Album - most scrapbooks are 12x12, 8 1/2x11, and 8x8...I prefer 12x12 & have used K & Co post bound albums as well as Making Memories & American Crafts D-ring albums...THIS thread at 2peas might help you in deciding what type of album to choose.

I'm stopping the list with those items. Clearly, a million other products are out there, but these are some I find I use practically every. single. time. I scrapbook.  Here are a few tips about what NOT to do:

**DO NOT buy a bag of paper scraps or cardstock scraps. EVER.
**DO NOT buy something just because it's on sale.  MAKE SURE you really like it AND will USE it.
**DO NOT be afraid to use your "good stuff."  Still working on this myself, but I've almost recovered. ;)
**DO NOT go crazy at the dollar spot (i.e., Target or any other store).
**DO NOT be afraid to journal in your OWN HANDWRITING. Even if it's bad, your family will treasure it some day. Seriously.
**DO have fun and realize that you are making these albums for you and your family, not for a design team. 
**DO journal your story, try to remember dates, and add details to your pages for future generations.

Also, HERE is a link to a post on a popular scrapbooking message board where people gave examples of the minimum scrapbooking supplies they could not live without.

And....

since I think blog posts without some sort of pics are useless,

here's a sneaky at a junkin' find I'll be showing you soon!

Welcome Friends

Welcome, friends, to my shabby little blog.  For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with vintage things and the mysteries surrounding them.  From little old purses and jewlery to books and trunks, I love imagining the possibilties of where items have been and what the original owner must have been like.  Little mysteries that surround the past, like figuring out who those people in old family photos are, have been part of the reason I am inspired to scrapbook.

I hope to use this blog to inspire you to preserve your memories and find your creative outlet.  With budget-friendly scrapbooking tips, detailed tutorials, and links to other creative inspiration maybe you will be able to leave here learning a thing or two. 

Junkin', or "yard sale-ing" as we liked to call it growing up, has always given me a rush.  I love to hunt for treasures and firmly believe the old saying, "One person's junk is another person's treasure."  I randomly go junkin', but I plan to share my finds with you and will even be posting some finds and scrappy items in my etsy shop Abby Grace Vintage.

Here's a sneaky of my first etsy item.  Check it out HERE.