i believe in fairies

Are you following along on the authentique & maya road promo? then you're in the right place!

after you check out the inspiration here on the authentique paper blog today, be sure to head on over to the Maya Road blog to find out what the talented members of the maya road design team have created.

today's project was inspired by my fascination with "the world of arrietty" and my love of fairies. 

i believe, do you?

i started with the 3x3 canvas coaster album from maya road and a collection of glimmer mists.

the fairies were created with different papers from authentique and chipboard dress forms from maya road. each fairy is dressed from a different paper collection.

there is a tiny bit of crackle paint and ink on each dress form base and head.

and many "missing" items from my house have magically appeared here in this mini book ...  

keepsake fairy is dressed with "carefree" paper and her wings used 

chunky elements embossing powder.

we can never find our keys at our house... 

stitching fairy created a dress with a bit of my "delightful" paper.

just like a true "borrrower", little bits and pieces from my craft drawer, 

including some of my maya road "sew cute" minis have appeared here.

spring fairy has faux grass, maya road leaf trinket pins and flocked wings. 

she borrowed her dress material from a sheet of my "free bird" nest.

seaside fairy is dressed with glittering wings to go with her "splendid" dress. 

in her travels she has gathered shells and ocean treasures. 

knick knack fairy "borrowed" all of our watch gears. 

she's obsessed with time, and with my "splendid" paper.

i hope this tiny book has inspired you with big ideas. be sure to stop by the authentique and maya road pages today, and visit tomorrow for more authentique inspiration!

Welcome Gypsies to the Handmade Holidays Blog Hop!!!

Calling all crafters! We’ve gathered designers from some of our favorite manufacturers to show you ways to create something from the heart this holiday season. This 3 day Hop includes over 60 stops with inspiration brimming from every corner. Explore all thoughtful and frugal handmade gifts you could make for the holidays, all in one place on this Hop!

To sweeten to Hop, we’re offering a gift for you! How does one of the 6x6 Bundles from EACH of Authentique Paper's current 7 collections sound?

For every comment you leave on the blogs in the Hop, you'’ll be entered to win a prize pack from one of the participating manufacturer sponsors (including the fabulous prize pack from Authentique Paper)!
Visit the list of blogs below and leave a comment on each by Nov 7, 2011 at 11:59 PM {PST}. Each day we will be sharing a brand new list of blogs with brand new projects for you to explore, be inspired by, and create from! 
You've probably just visited the amazing Karen Clark. Be sure to visit the blogs of some more design team members from all over the industry. What a privilege to see my name on this list of fabulous artists!

Clearsnap
Spellbinders
Hampton Art
Zutter
Graphic45
Donna Salazar Designs
The Twinery
Authentique Paper
Glue Arts
Sabrina Alery – Clearsnap
Laura Denison – Graphic 45
Karen Taylor – Donna Salazar Designs
Beverly Sizemore – Hampton Art
Kazan Clark – Spellbinders
Janeen Shember – Authentique Paper
Charlotte Jenkins – Clearsnap
Grace Hester – The Twinery
Nicole Eccles – Graphic45
Audrey Pettit – Donna Salazar Designs
Nan Paturzo – Zutter
Jeannie DeGruccio – Authentique Paper
Tamara Tripodi – Glue Arts
Cheers to creating gifts from the heart this holiday season!
Happy Hopping and now for my handmade holiday madness! 

Part 1 - the great frame-up!

We're starting with a simple pine frame from the local craft supply store, Authentique Paper's "Gathering" collection, and some Glue n Seal.

First I cut the paper into thin strips - less than 1/4" is best. Starting in the top corner, I applied a thin layer of Glue n Seal to a small section, and place strips in random order, side by side. I left the edges hanging over both sides of the frame.

After allowing a little dry time for the front, I applied Glue n Seal to the sides, wrapped the strips and trimmed to fit.

 

Keep going until the entire frame is covered. Go for randomness, don't try to create a repeating pattern. The charm is in the spontaneity.

Part 2 - And now it's time for flowers

I started by hand cutting 5 circles, each about 2". It's easiest if you cut 2" squares with a trimmer, then hand cut the circles from them.

Next, I misted 4 circles and crumpled them into balls. Then I pulled them open and folded them each in half, and in half again. Then I scrunched and shaped each piece into a flower bud shape.

Finally, I glued the 4 flower bud shapes onto that fifth circle, scrunching and shaping to achieve a carnation-style flower. I also made additional buds by misting, scrunching and folding circles, but not gluing them into a flower form.

Part 3 - time to get it all together!

I like edginess. So I used a Ranger Ink Acrylic Paint Dabber and dabbed Espresso around the inside and outside edges of the frame. Then I hot glue gunned the flower and buds onto the frame. 

And finally I added some special touches. Prima's "Say it in crystals", trinkets from Maya Road, Authentique "Elements" and some felt leaves from my special drawer combined quite nicely, giving the frame the look of a page layout.

Thank you for stopping by the gypsy caravan. I hope you join the caravan and become a gypsy yourself! Make sure you keep hopping along to get more inspiration for a handmade holidays!

Materials:
Authentique Paper "Gathering" collection papers and elements
Pine frame from Michael's craft store
Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabber in "Espresso"
Glue n Seal
Prima "Say It In Crystals"
Maya Road lace doilies and cameo roses

And if you're just joining the hop today, take a look at what's been going on all weekend!

November 5th:

Clearsnap

Spellbinders

Hampton Art

Zutter

Graphic45

Donna Salazar Designs

The Twinery

Authentique Paper

Jan Hennings – Glue Arts

Kim Sonksen – Donna Salazar Designs

Jamie Harper – Hampton Art

Jenny Suchin – The Twinery

Heather Conklin – Authentique Paper

Glue Arts

Gloria Stengel – Graphic 45

Christine Emberson – Spellbinders

Julie Overby – Spellbinders

Julie Ranae Murray – The Twinery

Mary Dawn Quirindongo – Clearsnap

Lea Sanders – Zutter

Tara Orr – Graphic45

Patti Milazzo – Glue Arts

Emily Lanham – Authentique Paper

Jessy Christopher – Donna Salazar Designs

November 4th:

Clearsnap

Spellbinders

Hampton Art

Zutter

Graphic45

Donna Salazar Designs

The Twinery

Authentique Paper

Glue Arts

Sherry Cheever – Graphic45

Claire Towle – Hampton Art

Emily Leiphart – The Twinery

Andrea Budjack – Glue Arts

Lesley Langdon – Spellbinders

Daniela Dobson – Clearsnap

Natasha Naranjo Aguirre – Donna Salazar Designs

Lisa Day – Glue Arts

Lynne Forsythe – Zutter

Jennifer Priest – Clearsnap

Tifany DeGough – Authentique Paper

Holly Simoni – Spellbinders

Fleur Smith – Zutter

Stephanie Johnson – The Twinery

Robyn Weatherspoon – Clearsnap

happy-ness

another box of joy. being on a design team is great! i get a box of products and free license to create. this month's box was filled with basic grey's "sweet threads" line - "SWEEEEET"

my big discovery with this project was making "smooshie flowers". take a close look at the flower details and check out what happens when you mist and then smoosh up die-ut paper. the result is wonderfully whimsical. add a little ink or glitter, and the final look is so sweet. and check out my newest zipper flower! i used maya road's zipper trim and created a dahlia.

the other bit of fun was working with maya road's canvas dress forms. layers of tattered angels glimmer mist, add a cool stamp for texture, and you end up with a beautiful accent. add a couple of stick pins, and you also get a unique place to mount some small pics or keepsakes!

and finally, why not tuck away some fancy tags? a matted photo can become a great pocket to hold more photos, journaling, and keepsakes!

overall, i had a blast making all these elements, and using so many different products! stay tuned tomorrow for a whole minibook made of "sweet threads", zippers, glimmer mist and more!

Play Fair Minibook

i proudly present my first design team project. the challenging thing about this was getting a box of paper and embellishments. period. now you would think that having an open field would make it easy but no! faced with wide open choices, it took me some time to settle down and choose a project - minibook. then i needed to find a cohesive theme - i'm very high concept and firmly believe that everything should tell a good story not just be pretty things lumped together.

so here it is, the "play fair" minibook. made of the glitz "love games" paper line and many of their embelishments, it has lots of little special features. zipper ribbon flowers and a secret heart made from maya road's zipper ribbon. fold outs, hidded pages and a minibook in the minibook. flowers made from paper, acrylic, crepe paper and zippers. a custom charm and spinner game! so many details!