Bits & Pieces Sneak Peek #2

one of my tasks this weekend is to finish painting all these little guys.
I have a few other things to do as well. ;)


hope your saturday is fantastic.

I saved polaroid (a little bit)

On Friday, our downtown Urban Outfitters got some 600-type polaroid film (and apparently, little polaroid sculpture pieces) available for purchase.

I bought a few packs (ouch on the budget) to help out the Impossible Project (and to replenish my stash). I love integral film, but dang it is expensive. I really hope that they are able to get the new film developed next year.

Thank goodness I can still shoot Fuji on my packfilm cameras. It's not the same though...

Anyway, a funny thing happened at check out when the sales girl apologized that there weren't any cameras available for purchase. I told her that the camera thing was really not an issue for me.

;)

A reflection about the end of summer

Currently in my favorites at the Flickr:1. workshop sneak, 2. quote a "week", 3. love, 4. day 84-You don't know where you came from,, 5. underwood letters macro, 6. If you see a friend without a smile; give him one of yours., 7. i made all of these., 8. Coffee Comfort, 9. TTV kitchen display

Feels like time is just slipping by. Next week is September.

Summer is gone far too quickly this year.

Have lately had lots of things on my mind. And there have been lots of things to do and see and make. Thinking of things that cause purpose. Thinking of things that cause inspiration.

Really just trying to enjoy being in the moment. When I remember to, anyway. Sometimes I get so excited or wrapped up in something I will bury myself in it, to the exclusion of all else.

It is at those times that I need to pull myself back, and take a deep breath, and remember all the other things that are important to me, that I want to do, etc.

I've been making an effort lately to try and connect more. To be aware of the communication that I send out into the world. To be a better friend. To be a better sister or partner. To be honest about the things that I really want and need in my life.

It's so easy for me to let things slip by. To let the awareness of the days that pass blur into each other. To let my focus be obscured by something, like seeing a busy city street only through a macro lens.

I'm really looking forward to this last weekend of August. I think it will be a good opportunity to finish some things that need finishing. I hope to use up a bunch of film, and to sleep in, and finally get some paint on my hands again.

In two weeks I will be spending a few days at G's family cabin. No internet or electricity... far from all the comforts of civilization. If that isn't enough to take me away from my normal routine, I don't know what is. I'm planning to spend some time with nature, with the boy, and get some real quality art journaling done. It feels so selfish, but it is so needed.

until next time, happy friday to you.

Bits & Pieces Workshop Questions

Since I posted the sneak preview post I have gotten a few questions about the workshop.

1. So what is the deal? What are the options?
Basically, the class focuses on taking a snapshot of the bits + pieces of your life right now. The things, places,and people that you love and are grateful for.

The end result is a mini-book, though there are other inspirational tools and ideas along the way. It is a very flexible and self-paced class. The class is based on 18 lessons and includes journaling prompts, photo templates, downloads for custom word art, tutorials on how to make the book (which has over 58 interior pages) as well as how to make custom envelope clasps, hand cut titles, misting masks and much much more. There is a private blog with a Flickr group.

To give you an idea of the detail I put into this, there are over a thousand photos shared on the blog, so you really get the step by step details of all the projects.


2. How much will it cost?
Please refer to the listing on Etsy for the available price.
You will be able to purchase the kit, the kit and class, or just the class.

Please note that the class is do-able without the kit I put together, and there will be some fun digital stuff that can take the place of the stamps.
And if you can't swing it right now, don't worry, I have many more classes planned for the future. :)

3. Will there be a wait list?
At this time I am not doing a wait list for for the class, though there will be pretty much an unlimited amount of spots available for the online only option.

4. I'm not much of a mini-book scrapper... is this class going to be difficult?
I would rate this as a more middle level class. There will be a ton of step by step pictures and directions. If you get lost of have any questions, I will absolutely be there to help you out. :)

5. I'm not really familiar with hybrid or digital scrapping, and I don't have Photoshop. What should I do with the digital stuff?
There will be photo templates available only for use by by those who have Photoshop or Photoshop elements. However, all the other digital elements will also be available as PDF files and PNG files. This means if you don't have Photoshop you can still easily open and print the elements to be used on your pages. There will be tutorials and other information available to assist you with using these types of files.

6. I am going to be out of town in September. Can I still participate?
Absolutely. I myself am going on vacation for a whole week in September. I designed this class based on what I most enjoy about online classes... one of which is the ability to take it at my own pace.

Still have more questions? Comments? Just let me know.
I am still SUPER excited for this class. It is going to be awesome.
Have a great day!

Bits & Pieces Class Sneak Peek

At last, the planning phase is done.

Now into the crafty, messy, creative, business-woman phase.I am so excited. I really think this is going to be an awesome experience.

Beginning next month I am going to have an online workshop called "Bits & Pieces" available for purchase. The focus will be on creating a mini-book about all those little bits of life around you that you feel are worth recognizing and appreciating.

Right now I am putting kits together, building the class site, creating content, getting things weighed for shipping estimates, etc. etc.

The class is going to run for 2-3 weeks starting on September 28th.
(Still working out a few of the details.)

The pace of the workshop will be very relaxed. Participants will be able to work at their own pace. And after the "live" part of the class is over, participants will have access to the private blog for at least one year.

In this class, there will be journaling prompts, technique tutorials, photography tips, links to really cool online resources, plus some class-exclusive digital content designed by me.

Workshop participants will have access to a private blog, a private Flickr group for sharing photos and a PDF of all lessons covered in the class. Plus, quality time with me. ;)

And did I mention there would be giveaways?

But I must say that my favorite part of this whole process is the kit. For a mini-book, of course. And quite a large one, when all is said and done.

The kit will include:

1 exclusive handmade fabric and chipboard album with silver bookrings and silver grommets
12 sheets heavyweight double sided patterned paper (6x6)
1 sheet single sided woodgrain pattern paper (6x6)
6 sheets cardstock (6x6)
4 clear acrylic pages (4.25x6)
7 Vintage book pages (various sizes):
- three sheets from vintage French dictionary
- two sheets from vintage math book
- two sheets from vintage Latin dictionary
- two sheets from antique illustrated dictionary
2 sheets of graph paper
2 sheets of wide ruled notebook paper
1 sheet of woodgrain contact paper
Handmade embellishments and ephemera including:
- 12 hand-stamped labels
- 5 handmade chipboard buttons
- 2 playing cards (white/black)
- Assortment of vintage buttons
- Assortment of punched embellishents, including tabs, tags and journaling spots.
- Lengths of coordinating ribbon and lace

And.... 1 Exclusive rubber stamp designed just for this class.

Additionally, when the kit is put up for sale, my etsy shop will also be stocked with optional add-ons, including alphabets, additional custom-designed rubber stamps and a few surprise goodies. (And of course I will combine shipping on any order.)

In addition to busily hammering away at grommets, I am also working on a Q&A. Please comment on this post or email me with any questions.

A visit to Paper-Ya in Vancouver, BC

So one of the most amazing moments on our recent mini-break to Canada was that Greg took me to a lovely paper goods shop called Paper-Ya in Granville Island. The amazing part was that he let me shop... with him there. This was an amazing and unprecidented occurrence. But that is the great thing about vacation, you get to do unusual things, I guess. :)

Anyway, there were lots of cool things there. See?

Hope you had a great weekend!

meet the new kids

These are my two newest cameras.. Yue and Trent. One is a Golden Half and one is a Polaroid 100. I love the contrast between them... new lomo and old school polaroid.

So excited to see what pictures they will take.

I've got a trip coming up next month... a road trip + some time at Greg's family cabin.. I have been trying to decide what cameras to take... I think possibly these two and the Rebel. Or maybe all three and Mustache (my SX-70). FYI, we call him Mustache because he's from the 70s and for some reason Greg's 'stache looks really pronounced in all the photos we take. Speaking of... I need to listen to Sabotage, right now.

peace out.

August Label Tulip Projects

This kit at first seemed a little girly.. but then I totally got into it. Label Tulip always has the most amazing coordinated kits. I truly am lucky to be a tulip girl.

I made a card, four layouts AND a mini-book.... Good stuff.

The mini book still isn't finished... but it has a solid foundation. It will have its own post when finished. Have a great day!

the haps, with some antique mall lovin

If I had a million dollars to spend on antique and vintage cool stuff, I would spend it at Pacific Antique Gallery. So many neat things to see.

a lot of it is very expensive though. On my last trip I bought a housewife's ledger book from 1943-4 and a metal box. On the rare occasion I have time to visit, I very much enjoy just walking around and looking at all of the treasures they have.

alright.... so now that you have your eye candy... here is a top of the minute bloggy update on the haps with me. First of all phew... things sure have been busy around here!

Still haven't finished editing photos for the Canada trip... But I did finish up my label tulip projects (those should be up tomorrow). The main kit is unfortunately sold out... but you can still see some of the fabulous things made by the other girls in the gallery. Wow. Wow. Wow.

I cleaned up (not kidding) 1442 emails out of my inbox. Slooowly working on responding to people. If you are waiting on an email from me, I am so sorry! I know it is rude for not getting back right away, but I am working on it, I swear!

Class update: Got some proofs back of the papers I had designed. I ended up being unhappy with how they printed... So I have decided to send that particular project back to the drawing board, and get to work on another class that I am much happier with. Got the papers and fabrics all worked out and purchased. Just need to go on the hunt for a few more things and get the stamp order out. (Custom stamps, yum!). Also haven't quite decided whether to do an alphabet or not. A lot of people asked for one.. but they will definitely add to the price of the kit.... And I want to keep the cost down as much as possible. :) At this time based on my other design commitments and travel plans, I am aiming for everything to be ready around the last week in September.

On the upside, Shimelle did just post the new info for Learn Something New, a great class that will start on September 1st.

That's all for me from now. hope all is well.

happy monday!

Minibook Madness

I love minibooks. They are my favorite thing to make.

It's funny... I remember when I started scrapping I thought that minis were not really appealing and that I would never make one. Boy was I wrong. In the last two years I think I have made about 30 minibooks. That mosaic above is a nice collection of some of the minis I have completed.

Due to various deadlines and bouts of Craft ADD, I also have about seven more books that are unfinished/unphotographed and still in progress. I also keep a running list of minibooks that I would make...and right now the list is running about two pages long... with no signs of stopping anytime soon. (Some of them are ideas for classes. Some for kits I would like to make/sell. But of course, I would need to make a sample project or two..)

I think that time management is key when working on a project like a mini-book. Especially for me. Most of my "mini" books are more like full albums with 10-20 pages per book. You must have a plan. Also, you should have all of your photos printed in advance. I think editing and picking my photos is the most difficult part of making a mini for me. And it is so very easy to get distracted from that process.. as it doesn't really feel like I am crafting until I have glue and paper in hand.

I am most inspired by other artists when it comes to minibooks. Thanks to google reader, Here are links to some of my very favorite projects out on the web (in no particular order).

Ali Edwards
Daily December in July
Transparency Album
Summer is
September KOTM
January Cocoa Daisy
Inspired Project
Perspective book
Quotes book

Amanda Johnson
A personal mini-album
Road Trip
Actually, all of her minis are pretty rockin

Celine Navarro
Inspiration Tuesday #3
Inspiration Tuesday #2
Inspiration Tuesday #1

Danielle Flanders

Pink Paislee Amber Road

Debee Campos

Little Things

Our Home

Denise Laborde

Adventure

Dina Wakley
Wings
My Loves

Donna Downey
Creative Play

Elise Blaha (via Ali's blog)
Small Blank books tutorial
NY Trip
Lots of little books
Art Journal

Elsie Flannigan

Three minibooks with Love Elsie products

Valentine's book

Neverland and Wonderland kits

Eve Johnson

I just love everything she does

Gigi Kennedy

You Have This

Janet Hopkins (via Ali's blog)
Baby Milestones

Jamaica E

New York
Fabric covered spine tutorial

Jen Jockish
Prima Canvas Album

Kinsey Wilson

New Friends Line Theresa Collins

Tina Aszmus
Click (Studio Calico)

Shimelle Laine
Summer Reading

Stephanie Wheeler
5 Year Secret Keeper book

Sadly, most of Kristina Contes' stuff is gone from the web now.. but she had a ton of minis that were just fantastic. Like this one.

Oh, and here are some links from my favorites at 2 Peas in a Bucket:
Summer vacation album class
Repurposed book tutorial
Full of It

And some from Flickr:
Autumn Loves
Vee Jennings' Mini set

And I always love what Kim and Jenn come up with. And Kara's minis are always super cute.
And I loved this book that Melissa did.

I am sure I have forgotten some of them.. but we can always just do another post! Hope you're inspired to make a mini-today. I'll be working on one tonight. :)

If you have any good links to share, or want to send me a link to one of your mini's I'd be happy to go check it out.

Happy Thursday.

August Label Tulip Sneak Peeks

proof of scrapping going on around here. but under a pretty tight deadline. more later.

thanks for stopping by!

weekend getaway

Our trip was only for about 24 hours but it was a good one. Lots of good stories. We went to Granville Island and Stanley Park and the Capilano Suspension Bridge and Treetop walk... and had a great little road trip. Canadian mall food was eaten. Adventures were had.

I am still working on editing photos, thus the skimpy post tonight. Going to do another mini-book. Can't decide what products to use... we'll see. Supposedly the mail man will be bringing my August Label Tulip kit tomorrow.... maybe I'll use that. :)

Hope you had a great weekend!

Donna Downey Canvas Album - Alki Beach Style

So.. one of the July Label Tulip add-ons was the Donna Downey Prima Canvas Album. I loved this album from when it was first released and was so excited to play with it. This is my first 8x8 minibook, and as per usual, it is more of a maxi-book than a mini.

It is mostly made with the main LT kit and the stuff from the add on. I ended up having to throw a few things in there from my stash, and I think it turned out pretty good.

The cover is stamped all over with the infinity stamp from one of the add-ons in a light grey, and then I covered the fabric in gel medium to stabilize it and then cut it out like a patterned paper. To keep the little shell from breaking, I filled the back with glossy accents.

All of the canvas pages were inked and then machine-stiched in a random swirly pattern. Layers and layers went into the pages. I love this book and I hope that you will too. Here we go:

You can also see more detail shots starting here on my flickr pages.

((NOTE: My last few posts have been pretty-photo intensive. If you are having any problems with page load time, please let me know.))

Thanks for looking!

p.s.

I am going out of town from Friday morning until Sunday. We are going on a mini-vacation to Vancouver, B.C.

I may blog, I may not... I will be planning another minibook though :)

Hope you have a great weekend!