Dolls House, Completed!

This has been by far the most ambitious craft project I've undertaken.  It's taken a few months, chipping away at it here and there, but I'm finally done with it!  And I'm so excited to share it with you all! 
Won't you join me on a little tour?

 The shingled roof, each shingle inked and attached individually by some crazy lady...

 If you look closely, you just might see a little kitty peeking out the bay window!

 

And another little kitty pouncing on a flower on the little tiled front porch.

Home sweet home... 
I love the colours of the English Rose Collection - they worked perfectly with the romantic feel of the house.  All the roof is shingled in "Thelma" paper, while the walls are wallpapered in the soft tones of "Lillian".  The windows and doors are cut from "Thelma", and the frames are from the reverse of "Estelle".  The tiles on the front porch were punched out of scraps of "Thelma", and coated in glossy accents to give it more of a tiled feel.  Planter boxes were created from bazzill cardstock, with a few antique copper brads for good measure.  The roses in the planter boxes, as well as the ferns are from Green Tara, while the Polystyrene Posies sprays are Kaisercraft. 
Hope you have a fabulous weekend!
x Rita

Beautiful Simplicity

You might have noticed that I've been featuring a lot of Kaisercraft based projects lately.  As you may know, Kaisercraft is doing a design team call out, and I'm planning on throwing my hat in the ring - I don't know if I'll be lucky enough to score a place on the design team (there's soooo many talented scrapbookers out there!), but if you don't try, you'll never succeed. 
Is there a Kaisercraft project I've done on here that you especially like?  If so, please leave a comment - I'd love some feedback on which layouts have been your favourites! It might make sorting out which projects to include in my application a bit easier! 

Meanwhile, my project tonight features the heavenly greens of the brand spanking new "Chapter One" collection.  I loved the specialty paper this month, It's a printed acetate, "Strength".  Acetate is a fantastic medium, but I love the simplicity of printed acetate - this layout virtually put itself together. 
I chose the paler green "Reflect" paper for the background, and layered up two photos from my wedding day.  I really loved the quote "Nothing is worth more than this day", so I layered that (cut from the "Belief" paper).  Finally, I placed my printed acetate sheet over the top of it all, and used a couple of tiny spots of glue to hold it in place - making sure that the glue spots were only placed where it would be concealed by the printing. 

To add a bit of glamour to the page, I glitzed the teal flourishes and leaves with some kindyglitz, in Crystallina. 
Simple, romantic, and timeless!


Materials used : Chapter One Collection papers - Reflect, Belief, and Strength Specialty Paper ; Kindyglitz - Crystallina; clear drying craft glue.

Craft Room Sign, all finished!

As promised, here's the finished sign.  It makes me happy every time I look at it!  I added some of the large (2 1/2" tall) Kaisercraft chipboard letters, which I painted in the same red as the canvas. 

It makes me smile just looking at it! 
x Rita

Altered Canvas Door Plaque

This project has been on my mind for a long time now.  I've been wanting to do a sign for the door of my craft room, but wanted it to be something a bit more "special" and textural than I'd done in the past.

When I saw the "Marmalade" paper from Kaisercraft's Nan's Favourites collection, I thought that it would be perfect for my craft room.  (It ties in beautifully with my gorgeous red chair!).  The "Dress Form" paper from the Timeless collection anchored my theme of handmade, so I squirreled my chosen papers away, while I collected bits and pieces to complete the project.
I used a 12x16 inch stretched canvas as my base, which I painted with two coats of red paint.  I trimmed my Marmalade paper down to leave a 1/2 inch border all the way around the page (I needed to cut a strip from a second sheet of paper to make the patterned paper continue across the width of the canvas).  I then distressed the edges of the Dress Form paper, and inked them with Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Walnut Stain).

 As a base for my flowers, I wanted to tie in the red theme again, so I used two large red Green Tara flowers, which I then topped with a bunch of Kaisercraft paper blooms. I chose the Buttercream pallette, and "pinked" some of them up with some My Tattered Angels Glimmermist (Vintage Pink).  Across the bottom, I used some vintage crocheted lace - my mother in law brought up a huge roll of this lace for me, that she'd been hanging onto for 20 something years!  I ruffled this along the bottom edge, to add a girly touch to the hanging.
A swirl of chocolate pearl flourishes, and a few pink sprigs from the Chanteuse Range of Polystyrene Posies, and I was almost done.

I had been busting to use one of Kaisercraft's dress forms for ages, so it was an easy choice to use this as the centrepiece of my floral flourish.  I trimmed the lower corner with a broken dangly earring (reuse, recyle and all that!) and now only have one thing left to do...
My title...
Which will have to wait until tomorrow, as I don't have enough letters to write what I want to!  Waah!!!!  Hopefully I'll be able to slip down to the Scrap shop in the morning so I can post a finished picture sometime during the day!
And now, I wonder how hubby will feel about repainting my craft room to match my pretty new door sign.... :) hehehehe
x Rita

Happy Easter!

 Wishing you and your loved ones a blessed and happy Easter! 

See you back here on Monday morning :)
x Rita

One of a kind...

This layout features papers from the gorgeous, soft "Lullaby" collection.

First of all, I trimmed two pieces of yellow bazzil cardstock to 11 1/2 inches x 10 1/2 inches, and two white (swiss dot patterned) sheets to 11 inches x 10 inches.  I wanted to give the page a clean uncluttered feel, but adding a little punch of bright colours just because I can! :)
And it just so happens that yellow is Stephie's favourite colour at the moment, so it works for me!
I chose the "baby talk" page as my base, as the deeper pink was able to handle the bright yellow a bit better, as well as matching the pinks in the photos a bit more.
From the "welcome home" page, I trimmed out all the rectangles at once, so I could just swap and change them around until I was happy.  I cropped 3 photos to 4x4 inch, and left the last one 6x4.

I initially wanted to go with a staggered feel to the page, but after much umming and aahing, decided to keep with the clean feel, and block in the whole area with bits and pieces of the welcome home page.

I added some of the kaisercraft lace to add a bit of texture to the page, and to add to the little girly look.  I tinted it light pink using My Tattered Angels Glimmermist, in Vintage Pink.  (I find that if i'm spraying ribbon or something that's a bit messy, rather than spray it on my desk, I spray it in the shower stall! No messy paper to clean up afterwards, and the overspray will wash off next shower!)

I also made a little rosette from an offcut of "baby bunting" paper, and topped it with a cute little button that I found in my stash of goodies.

For a little bit of interest, I attached some photos up on foam tape, and others directly to the page, and finished the layout off with some rhinestone flourishes (I cut one flourish up to make them a little smaller and more dainty), and added a few colourful butterflies from a sheet of the Bubblegum Hills Collection coloured rub ons.  This was a bit of an afterthought, but it really freshened the page up, and made it a little bit more "me".

And honestly, how sweet is this happy little bubba's face...  she melted my heart then, and still does now :)
Hope you're having a fabulous week!
x Rita

Scrapbook Stand

Last night I got frustrated trying to take a decent photo of my layout, so today I knocked up this little stand.  I used a piece of MDF that I had in the shed, which was about 450mm x 900mm.  I cut off approximately 100mm from one end to form the legs, and because I didn't want it to be way too big to store anywhere!

To make it storage friendly, I used a few small hinges to add the feet, about 120mm from the upper edge.  I wanted the legs to hinge so that they would store flat when I wasn't using it.  I picked these hinges up from a $2 shop a couple of years ago for $1 for a pack of 3 hinges! Bargain!  I knew I'd use them someday! :)

I used a piece of 12x12mm square dressed pine to add the rail that the pages would sit along, and then gave the whole lot a coat of paint.  For some reason, the tin of paint (that I only bought today!) was sputtering and throwing out all sorts of yuck, so I think for photos, I'll probably use a piece of fabric over the top as a backdrop. 

That will help in 2 ways - 1, it'll look pretty, and 2, it shouldn't reflect any glare, so hopefully I'll be able to get better photos!

 

x Rita

La Di Da Layout :)

This double page layout uses the Kaisercraft La Di Da range  - It's been out for a little while now, but the colours and funky design lends itself to being used for a cute little layout of my girls. 

Firstly (and most painfully slowly!), I cut out a full page of the little shapes from the "skip" design, and half a page of the green shapes from the "sing" design. 
I wanted to create a whimsical, layered, textured cluster of elements at the bottom corners of the layout with these, so I kept them in a safe place (after having to wrestle my almost 2 year old for them, when she decided they were HERS!)

To put the layout together, I ran a strip of the Kaisercraft Lace along the top, and then adhered a fat strip of the green and white polkadot "skip" paper just overlapping that slightly.  I matted my photos, and then arranged them a little wonkily along the strip. I then messed around a bit, layering up the little cutout pieces, before I decided how I wanted them to sit.  After that, it was as simple as sticking them all down, using foam tape here and there to add a bit of texture.  To finish, I used a rub on to title the layout, and journalled on a tag from the "Bubblegum Hills" collection (which I layered a few flowers from la di da over the top of, to make it match a bit more).
I really wanted to add a bit extra texture, and thought I'd try out the new "Polystyrene Posies" from the Chanteuse collection.  I love the little fluffy one, it reminds me of grass seeds in the long grass. :)

It didn't quite look finished once all that was done, so I went back, and slipped a little offcut of the "sing" paper on the left hand side - I think it needed a splash of pink on this side to tie in with the pink bird on the lower corner.  I also added a little glossy accents here and there to add a bit more texture.
The photos were taken on a river cruise that we took mid last year - don't those eyes just make you melt?!
Hope you're having a great week, I think my next job will be to make myself a photography platform so that I can take decent photos of my layouts! It's so hard to get a good photo of a layout - we'll see what I can come up with tomorrow! :) 
x Rita

Bo Bunny "Blast Off!" Puzzle Book

This puzzle book is one of Bo Bunny's winter CHA releases, and I'll admit, was quite overwhelming at first.  I wanted it to be just perfect, because it's such a sweet idea.
As I did it up for Michele at Scrapbook Shenanigans, I wanted it to be not just OK, i wanted it to be GREAT.  And as it's likely that my nephews will see it, it couldn't just be great, it had to be AWESOME!!! No pressure hey!


I had a look around online and saw that a lot of people had used bits and pieces of it, or stuck it all together as a full page, but it didn't quite inspire me.
I went the whole hog, and here you have a 3 way puzzle/mini album/page layout!
Firstly, I stuck down an enlarged photo of my nephews on the plainer side of the puzzle. (aren't they cute!)
I then gritted my teeth, and cut through the photo so I could separate them into puzzle pieces.  (Am I the only one who hates cutting through people in photos?)

Once that was done, I used one of the coordinating cardstock stickers to add a title  to the puzzle. I chose to keep it simple on this side, as I didn't want to have too many elements that might fall off.  Stickers were a pretty safe bet! 

Once that was all good to go, I turned it over and reassembled the puzzle.  I had a whole stack of photos from when the boys were playing silly buggers on our trampoline, so I printed them off as both wallet sized and "contact sheet" sized photos, so I could pick and choose which photos to use, in which sizes.  It made assembling the book so much easier, to have that choice at my fingertips, rather than having to have to reprint if I wanted a different size.

I added titles using a little Dymo "caption maker" machine, (the old school variety, so it gives a pressed out letter rather than a printed letter), and added some embellishments that I cut from some of the coordinating papers, and from the stickers. (I found the stickers were a bit big to use to embellish the puzzle pieces on their own).

I then detailed some of the elements with a bit of glossy accents, and added a little piece of metallic silver ribbon to the tag on the top puzzle piece.  

I'm super excited about this, I think this may well be the first mini album that I've completed that I actually like, let alone love! 

And now for the three way demonstration...
 Puzzle,

Mini Album,

Scrapbook layout!

Yay!
x Rita

Pencil Rolls

My girls were given a set of colouring in pencils the other day, and world war three broke out.  "That's my pink pencil!!!! " and so on...
I decided then and there that I'd make the girls an individual pencil roll, so that they had a place for each of their pencils, and so that I would be spared the arguments.
For this I used 2 squares of fabric, about 25x25cm, as well as 2 rectangles of 9cm x 25cm.
I sewed the rectangles along the long edges, and turned them in the right way.
I then took the inner fabric, and stitched the rectangle on one short edge, to the bottom section of the square.

I then sewed lines, about 2cm apart, on the rectangle, so that the pencils would have a nice little divider. I wanted to leave enough fabric at the top to be able to fold a flap over the top of the pencils to stop them falling out. 

Once that was done, I lay the outer fabric over the top of the pencil holder, and stitched all the way around the edges, leaving a gap to turn.
I clipped the corners, and turned it in the right way, and added a line of topstitching all the way around, to seal the gap and to add a bit of strength.
Finally, I sewed a length of ribbon onto the back of the outer, to tie the bundle up with!

Wouldn't these make fabulous little gifts?  I can see them all packaged up with a pretty colouring in book (or a tough one, if you make it in boys fabrics!) - super cheap to make, and really quick too.  I made these 2 in about 30 minutes!

 Let's see if it helps me avoid world war three tomorrow!
x Rita

Sleeping bag bags

I was asked today to run up a sleeping bag cover for my nephew, whose sleeping bag's old cover had a bit of a blow out. 
I decided to use a simple cylinder style bag, but to make it a bit cooler (we all know how cool young boys are - they wouldn't want anything that looked a bit sissy), I decided to make the outside in black, and line it in red. 

The construction of the bag doesn't get much more simple than this - I cut a rectangle, of 43cm x 80cm, from both the red and black fabric.  I then cut a rough circle, with a diameter of 13cm (this is allowing for a 1cm seam allowance. 
Stitch the short sides of each rectangle together, and then stitch on the matching coloured circle to the bottom. Repeat with the other colour.
Turn the lining fabric bag in the "right way", and pop it inside the outer bag, and stitch around the top, leaving a small gap to add your ribbon or cord.  Turn in the right way and press, if you like.

I then ran a line of stitching about 2.5cm from the top seam of the bag, all the way around.  This will keep the cord in place. 
I chose to use little eyelets for the cord entry and exit point, so I inserted them in the gap that I'd left, and then theaded through some black ribbon.  (Cord would probably be better, but I didn't have any!)
I then stitched a line of topstitching around the top of the bag, to close up the gap, and to add a bit of strength to the top of the bag. 
Don't forget to tie a knot in your ribbon or cord, so that it doesnt' get lost inside! 

This bag is super quick to make - I think it only took me about 15 minutes!
I also ran up another bag in some sweet dinosaur fabric, for my niece.  I made both bags a bit oversize, so that it's easier to fit the sleeping bag in, but also leaves plenty of room for those sleepover essentials!
x Rita

Kaisercraft Memo Board

I saw this sweet little memo board set at the shops the other day, and thought about what a great little gift it could make.  I decided to make it up using the Bubblegum Hills Collection, for my sister in law's birthday gift. 
Firstly, as with all Kaisercraft kits, I sanded the edges using fine sandpaper.  I then gave the edges a good coat of pink paint, and left it to dry.  For the base, I chose to use the Apple Spritz paper.  I applied this using mod podge, and then carefully trimmed the excess away with a craft knife and the round file from the Kaisercraft set.  (If you like doing off the page projects, the file sets are well worth the investment!)
I then covered the little shelf with bits and pieces from the Candy Confetti sheet, and attached that. 

 I wanted to add a bit of interest behind the notepad, so that once the notepad was used, the board would still be pretty and useful.  I added a rectangle of the pink (Candy Confetti's reverse side), with rounded corners, and over that, I used some of the gorgeous colour rubon's.  These are all but hidden when the notepad is place, but when it's long gone and forgotten, the rubons will add a sweet little bit of detail. 

I desperately wanted to use some of the printed and layered chipboard on this project, so I chose the hot pink and orange flower, and trimmed off one of the petals to allow it to sit on the little protruding edge of the shelf.  It wasn't quite enough, so I added the centre of one of the other flowers, which I layered on foam tape for extra dimension. 
To finish the board off, I trimmed the hot pink scallop from the Candy Confetti paper, and used that to back the area where I wanted to fix in the screw hooks, and trimmed the edges of the top section with pearl strips, for a bit of bling. 
I enhanced a few spots here and there with a little bit of glossy accents too (especially under the key hooks), not only for looks, but to make that section a little bit more durable. 
Hopefully she'll like it! 
x Rita

Time for a cup of tea...

The girls have been loving playing with their tea set and kitchen the last few days, but play food has been a bit scarce at the moment for some reason.  I decided to make a couple of quick little teabags from felt so that they have something a bit more realistic when they make Nannie a cup of tea.  (despite the fact that she likes coffee... sometimes you need to make do!)

For these I cut a rectangle of white felt, folded it in half and then sewed along the bottom fold.  (I wanted a crease in the base, but I later discovered this probably wasn't necessary. 
I then folded the white felt back in the other way, and used a whip stitch to bind the edges of the felt together into a teabag shape. Halfway around I added a piece of string, and just before I sewed it shut, I added a few strips of dark maroon felt inside to make it look like it's filled with tea leaves. 
I then added a little tea bag tag to the other end of the string the same way. 

And then I made myself a nice little cup of tea and a bikkie!  No calories whatsoever! 
Can't wait to show the girls in the morning!!!

x Rita

Layer Cake Skirt

 This skirt was a bit of an evolution. I started making it the other night, must've been too tired, because I stuffed it royally, so I gave up on it, and left it for a bit.  (I actually sewed the ruffle on inside out, but it was all overlocked and everything before I realised! Argh!)
I decided to try again yesterday, and was able to switch the joining seam on the purple around without having to unpick the whole lot.  It didn't help much with the rolled hem being the wrong way around (shame!)  but I added a sweet little ruffle of white lace all the way around to hide that - and I actually think that the frilly lace makes the skirt go from nice to WOW!

And Gracie thought it was pretty sweet too :)