Welcome spring!



{source}

Paper Issues Blog Hop & Giveaway

Hi all!

I hope you brought your sweet tooth with you, because today we're kicking off a new theme over at Paper Issues...CANDY! We also have a giveaway AND I have a special discount to the Paper Issues store just for you! YAY!

If you're hopping over here from Marlene, Deanna, Lori or Audrey's blog...welcome! If not, promise me you'll hop back at some point to visit each of these fabulous ladies to see what sweet things they've created!

It's no secret that I have a sweet tooth! Just ask my hubby & he'll start listing off all of my not-so-secret hiding spots for sweets. To kick-off this new theme, I created two projects. First off, a simple little card...

Totally loving the super sweet, new line from Dear Lizzy...isn't that lollipop sticker cute?!

My second project is an altered candy jar. When I saw photos of the Dear Lizzy goodie jars from CHA, I totally fell in love! Adorable. I just knew that I needed to make some...and then this new Paper Issues theme came along & it was perfect! I'm going to be having some scrappin' friends over soon and thought that it would be fun to make these to hold their favorite sweet treats! I started with a standard, wide mouth Mason jar and came up with this...

How fun is that? Super simple...and super fun to make! I think they'll look so darn cute on our scrappin' tables too! We'll have sugar at arms length to sustain us.

So now...on to the giveaway! Paper Issues is offering up a chance to win this fabulous kit!

15 yards of twine from The Twinery, 12 yards of Hug Snug Seam Binding (I love this stuff!) and all those lovely American Crafts Dear Lizzy patterned papers! Woohoo! Are you excited yet?!?

Here's what you need to do...'like' Paper Issues on Facebook and follow our blog. It's as easy as that!

If you just have to have this kit NOW, there are extra ones available for purchase in the Paper Issues store (along with loads of other fantastic new things!) AND if you use the code 'BETHANY' you'll get 20% off your entire purchase. Go check it out here! I know there's just something you can't live without. :)

Now, go satisfy your sweet tooth...create a sweet Candy themed project (if it is made with paper, you're in!) and link it up at the Paper Issues site so we can all get a sugar high! You'll get a bonus entry for the giveaway if you link up a project. Don't forget to go check out the other Designers creations for more inspiration too!

Happy Crafting!

xo

Love Day Layout

Hi friends!
Popping in on this blustery, wet day to share a layout that makes my heart warm and fuzzy...

(Apparently the layout makes my photos a little warm and fuzzy too...or that could be the photographer! Sorry, I didn't realize how crappy these pictures were!)

Anyhoo...I created this layout to feature the self portraits we took on Valentine's Day. My little family. I love that my hubby and our furry friend, Miss Griffin, are such good sports and humor my self portrait requests! We celebrated Love Day in the comfort of our own home...a wonderful, relaxing evening. King crab legs, chocolate brownie sundaes and an episode of The Biggest Loser. It was perfect.

The layout was created with product from the January Hip Kit, which is still available here. I totally love that orange polka dot paper from Amy Tangerine, the Crate Paper Accent Cuts from the Random collection, the Crate Paper buttons (love, love, love all of their buttons!) and the fun tissue trim from Studio Calico! Oh...and one of my other favorite things? The SMASH date stamp. I love this thing so much that I bought the one from Dear Lizzy...and then was delighted to receive an exclusive one from Studio Calico in my last SC kit. Yippee!

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy Crafting,

xoBC

A Washi World

I saw these photos on the fabulous Hello Sandwich blog and couldn't believe my eyes! Washi heaven. These are some photos that Ebony Bizys of Hello Sandwich took at the 2011 mt Masking Tape Expo in Tokyo. Many of my favorite washi-style tapes are mt masking tape from the Kamoi Kakoshi Company in Japan, so I was so excited to find this! 

I do believe there would be much less road rage in the world if we drove washi covered cars. Heck, let's give up cars altogether and ride washi covered bikes! Is this not the cutest thing ever? Seriously. So stinkin' cute. Pretty sure I'd ride my bike more if it was this cute.

Check out this AMAZING display that she captured...

The tape comes on these long rolls and then are cut down to the smaller rolls...

You can read all about how masking tape is created here. It's so interesting!

Hope you enjoy!

C is for Cake

Look at this yummy Tuesday Trigger from Moxie Fab World...'A' is for Apricot.

Here's the card that I was inspired to create, featuring a cute Alphabet Card from October Afternoon.

'C' is for Cake...

Go check out all the other fabulous creations here.

xoBC

What's your cure for the winter blues?

Do you think this would work?

Moxie Fab World's The Cure for the Winter Blues Challenge is to create a paper crafted project where navy blue is the star of the show. I played along and this is the card that I created...

A bit of denim paper from Crate Paper, some lovely patterned paper from My Mind's Eye Miss Caroline collection (one of my new favorites!), some random fiber from my stash, a cute navy button and a little splash of Mister Huey Opaque White.

All the inspiration over at Moxie Fab World is sure to cure some of your winter blues!

Go here to find inspiration and play along!

xoBethany

Banners, Banners...Everywhere!

For the Tuesday Tutorial this week over on the Hip 2B Square blog, Melanie shared her love of banners and several cute ways she has incorporated them into her layouts and cards. I'm right there with her & still love this banner trend!

Just go to Pinterest and search 'banners'...the banner inspiration is overwelming (and oh so joyful)!

Source: Pinterest (withtwocats.com)

Source: TheSweetOccasion.com

Source: BHLDN

Source: Pinterest (parishotelboutique.blogspot.com)

Our January Hip Kit included a package of the Wood Veneer Banners from Studio Calico. Here are a couple layouts I created using these banner pieces...

I really like how the wood veneer shapes add dimension to layouts and how versatile they are. I really like the look of them in their naked state, but you can also change them up a bit with paper or ink. On this layout I mixed it up...some natural wood, some covered in paper, some embellished with a button.

And for this layout, I added in some stickers, the photo, and that cute button card from Crate Paper for a big banner stitched down across the page.

My hubby gave me an Instax camera for my birthday in January, so I'm having a lot of fun shooting pictures with that...and love how the little photos look used in projects. Such a fun size!

Here's a layout I created with some of my recent Instax photos and the wood banner pieces...

I covered the banner pieces with patterned paper from the Hip Kit, sanded the edges & 'strung' the pieces up with bakers twine...

I adore this Amy Tangerine paper that was included in the kit...

On this card I used a couple of the natural wood banner pieces behind the blossom as an accent & to add a bit more dimension (not really a banner...but thought I'd share another way I used the banner pieces)...

Thanks for stopping by, friends. Wishing you a banner of a day!
xoBC

Coming Out of Hibernation

Is it spring yet?!?
Were you wondering when I was going to be coming out of hibernation?
I've missed you friends.
I can't believe how long it has been. Far too long. But I'm back! And the creative energy is flowing...

Since I haven't been here in so long, I'm not even sure where to begin! (Do you ever feel like that?!?)
For today, here are the cards that I created using the December Hip Kit (Yep, you read it right...December. We've got some catching up to do!)...

I love those October Afternoon Farmhouse Collection Flower Sack embellishments! I little bit of layering, some stitching & a splash of my favorite Mister Huey mists in Calico White and Dark Calico are all it took to create this quick & simple card!

I love Mister Huey...and I LOVE washi tape. So I was really excited to find the black & white dotted SMASH Tape included in this Hip Kit! 

I think this next card is just plain happy...just because. And it's in the mail and on its way to a sweet friend as I type.

Lots of fun patterns & colors in this kit...

Fun October Afternoon 5 & Dime Alpha stickers...

and the great Remarks stickers from the American Crafts Chap collection...

That's it for today...but stay tuned for more! I'm back for good!
xoBethany