Let's Catch Up!

Hey everyone! Long time, no see. I know. 

Lots and lots going on in my world...always. That never changes. I've lately withdrawn from social media for various reasons and also from blogging. As many of you know, I also have a homesteading blog where I share a lot of our real life home practices which includes a from-scratch lifestyle, raising a variety of animals for different purposes, and striving to maintain simplicity- all the while raising 3 young kids and being a "stay at home mom" who works multiple part-time jobs both inside and outside of the home. So I've realized the need to disconnect a bit more from my online life and focus more of my available energy toward the everyday demands of my actual life. Get what I mean?

So in an effort to maintain that balance, blogging has become rather secondary. I didn't mean to take this big of a break and I apologize. And I wanted to take the opportunity today to catch up on some Prima projects that I've done in the past couple months. I hope you enjoy :)

"Hello" Tag

This tag was created using my favorite of the new releases from Prima, the "Butterfly" Collection designed by Jodie Lee. To say I love this range would be an understatement.The patterns, images, and color palette are a dream come true. I'm really into purple at the moment, so this one is right up my alley.

I've paired the papers with flowers new and old, as well as some gorgeous embellishments. The frame seen here is from the new "Timeless Memories" trinkets packs.

"Fall in Love" Card

Another new release from Prima is Frank Garcia's "The Archivist" collection. In Frank's true style, you will find lots of neutral colors and awesome patterns. This is one of those collections that you just have to have as it is so versatile. 

I've used one of the new Prima Mixed Media stamps here to create the messy butterfly background. And the brown egg carton flowers are amazing- they are super thick and durable which makes them perfect for mixed media!

"Love is Beauty" Tag

The "Bella Rouge" collection is bold and gorgeous. I've paired the papers here with new flowers and new Finnabair Art Ingredients. Microbeads, glass beads, and new Color Bloom sprays add to the textured mixed media background here.

"Happy Moment" Tag

 Another project featuring the "Butterfly" collection. A bit of fussy cutting here brought this tag to life :).

Bedtime Story Mini Album

If you've got little kids, you've got to have the "Bedtime Story" collection! The vintage children's book theme offers diversity and so much interest to an album like this one. 

Lots of new flowers, brads, wood icons, crystals, and other embellishments helped me out along the way.

There you have it, folks! I hope I didn't overwhelm you too much- I know there's a lot of images in this post today. :)

And as the week enters the weekend, I hope life is treating you well. We've had some unusually nice weather around here- a week ago it was -20 F and now we're in the 40's. Although we have several feet of snow yet and March typically shows us our biggest snow storms, it's a welcome break from our always-too-long winter. I'm starting my seeds inside this weekend and have been anxiously planning for our biggest garden yet with so many dreams and plans to be fulfilled.

I wish you all the best. And I hope to see you soon!

xErin

Prima "The Archivist" Layout

Good morning! Hard to believe we're already half-way through January...although, being the first of the two coldest months of the year, I'm happy to see it go quickly :)

By now, you're well aware of the fabulous collections that Prima released for Winter CHA. "The Archivist" is one of them, and I'd like to share with you a layout that I created for CHA using this awesome new collection by Frank Garcia.

"Love"

Neutrals just simply do not go out of style! I love how versatile they are, especially for a rustic boy layout. My little guy Wyatt is simply in love with our many chickens, including this little girl who we affectionately call "Butterstuff". The vintage imagery available in this collection like the typewriters and clocks meld beautifully with the various florals, making it a range suitable for all styles and subjects!

Here are a couple of closeups:

Prima Products Used:

990220- Archivist Collection "Les Facons Dont Je T'aime"

990275- Archivist A4 Paper Pad

579524- Archivist Tag Me

579036- Archivist 4x6 Journaling Note Cards

578978- Archivist 3x4 Journaling Note Cards

579272- Archivist Clear Stamp

579395- Archivist Say it in Crystals

579586- Archivist Wood Icons

580469- Archivist Flowers

580506- Archivist Flowers

580476- Archivist Flowers

573836- Color Bloom Spray Mist- Tea Stain

573805- Color Bloom Spray Mist- Gold Foil

573829- Color Bloom Spray Mist- Worn Leather

961503- Art Ingredients Texture Paste- White Crackle

961596- Art Extravagance Glitter Set- Luminous

962562- Art Ingredients Micro Beads- Silver

962579- Art Ingredients Micro Beads- Copper

580001- 6x6 Stencil- Young Spring

962326- 7x9 Elementals Stencil- Dots & Stripes

 

 Thank-you for coming on over! I hope your week is off to a good start- take care of yourselves! :)

Life is Full of Wonderful: A New Layout for Webster's Pages

Good morning! It's been a busy behind-the-scenes month of creating for me as CHA is just around the corner, but I am here today to share with you a layout and a card that I made for Webster's Pages using the "Nest" Collection. This collection has rapidly become one of my all time faves! Bold colors, an array of patterns, motifs, etc- all come together for one versatile collection that easily suits every style!

First up, I have my layout which features my sweetheart of a daughter:

"Life is Full of Wonderful"

I wanted a sugary, frosted feel for this layout :). A bit of gesso toned down the background before I applied some masking with modeling paste and a sprinkling of microbeads and Prima glitters. Layers of cards cut from the "Nest" collection created the base for my photo.

I've used some of the collection cardstock stickers like the vintage telephone one here, as well as a jewel from a Webster's Pages bookmark.

I love the variety of paper straws- such cute, fun additions to any project!

This resin cameo is perfect for accenting a sweet little girl layout :)

Another resin piece from a Webster's Pages cameo set, I love the pennant shape and cute font :)

A Blue Fern Studios chipboard frame pulled the whole photo grouping together. I painted it white and sprinkled on some Prima glitter to give it some shine.

Webster's Pages Products Used:

Nest Collection Paper: Home With You

Nest Collection Paper: Special Places

Nest Collection Paper: Tickled

Nest Word 4x8 Sticker

Nest Memory Pockets & Labels

Love Bundle of Straws

Party Time Bundle of Straws

Chipboard Sticker Board- Our Travels

Cameo: Pink Party Gift

Charm: Camera

I also have a card that I would like to share with you, also using the Nest Collection. This one is a bit more tame :)

"She Follows Her Heart"

As mentioned, I just love the diversity available in this collection. I love the chevrons, feathers, bold colors, etc and lots of white too! I tried to contrast them here with just enough layers to create a simple yet fab card :)

I'm a bit obsessed with tulle lately :) I've tucked in a classic Webster's Pages ruffle ribbon trim to pull together the pinks. 

Webster's Pages Products Used:

Nest Collection Papers

Ruffle Trim

I hope that you are all doing good and that life is treating you as it should ;)

Take care,

Blue Fern Studios: A First Look @ "Blue Fern Garden" in Action!

Good morning!

I'm extra excited today because I get to share with you my very first project using the NEW  
"Blue Fern Garden" Paper Collection from Blue Fern Studios!

You will absolutely LOVE these papers :). They are incredibly detailed with crystal clear images printed on a nice heavyweight paper. I was impressed...and I'm confident that you will be too :)

{Psst...if you want to get your hands on these papers NOW, head on over to the C'est Magnifique store. They are in stock and ready to ship, along with all of their new chipboard designs, including those you see here!}

"Magical"

Today I'm sharing with you a girly girl layout to really show off the truly feminine side of this collection. Lots of pinks with just a hint of blue, paired with a few of my most favorite of the new chipboard designs...

This piece is one of the "Jeweled Page Baubles". I've dressed it up with glitter and various colors of microbeads.

The "Jeweled Trinkets" like this one are just as beautiful :)

I tore a section of the "Number Grid- Small" to create a textured photo mat. I used a sandy colored chalk ink and just a hint of mist/embossing powder to give it a little bit of color.

Blue Fern Studios Products Used:

Blue Fern Garden Collection Papers

Number Grid- Small

Jeweled Trinkets

Jeweled Page Baubles

Thank-you for coming over today :)
I have lots to show you this week, including my other 2 projects for Blue Fern, as well as a Magnifique Mixed Media project, some Webster's and some Prima. So don't stay away too long ;)

Take care,

Blue Fern Studios: Parts & Pieces!

Hey everyone- I'm here today with my last two Blue Fern Studios projects for the month, showing you how to use up some of your bits and pieces for those who like to piece apart your chipboard to make the most of it. We all like our product to go a little further!

For both projects, I've used 7 Dots Studio products as we continue our month-long swap with them. What fun it has been combining them with Blue Fern chipboard!

First up, I have a canvas to share:

"Grown Up"

I had two pieces remaining from the Doily Bunting and Page Chains sets. I made them a part of my mixed media background by applying gesso, tape, and embossing powder over top of them.

Products Used:

Page Chains

Doily Bunting

(7 Dots Studio Products Used: "Messy Head" Collection paper and Elements, "All I Ever" Collection paper and Stickers, "9th Wave" Collection paper, and "Hopefully" Collection Stickers)

Next up, I have a very girly tag :)

"Love Happens!" Tag

For this tag, I took the top section of the Princess Window and one of the Heart Set pieces. 

I simply painted the heart piece with gesso to accent the title of my tag. The window piece was primed with gesso before being traced with glossy accents. While the glossy accents was still wet, I sprinkled on broken glass glitter, star sequins, and microbeads.

Products Used:

Princess Window

Heart Set

(7 Dots Studio Products Used: "Messy Head" 6x6 Designer Pad and Elements)

Thank-you so very much for stopping by today! I hope you've had the chance to play along with our monthly sketch challenge- just a few more days left!

See you soon :)

Prima "Pin Spin"

Good morning! Today I have a fun project to share with you that I created for the Prima "Pin Spin" day. What we do here is find a pin on Pinterest and draw inspiration from it. Being a lover of Pinterest, this one was no problem whatsoever ;). I have a "Pretty Things that Inspire" board where I pin photos of varoius things that I feel might come in handy if ever I'm in a creative rut. So I headed right for that board and was inspired to create this canvas for my daughter :)

"You're Cute"

Here is my inspiration photo from Pinterest:

I was just completely inspired by this GORGEOUS color palette! Brights mixed with pastels- I couldn't think of a better combo. And the balloons encouraged me to add that "something extra" to this canvas that I might not normally do. Just a great all-around jumpstart for me.

 I couldn't resist this title. I swear, I say "You're CUTE!" about a thousand times a day in an obnoxious baby voice LOL! Perfect- and I can hear myself saying it when I see this canvas. A great way to capture a memory :).

The balloons were created from cardboard and covered with gesso; masked with modeling paste, watercolors and beads on top. Just hand-cut pieces- no need to be perfect :)

Products Used:

960445- 12x12 Stencil: Orbs
960469- 12x12 Stencil: Stars
960476- 12x12 Stencil: Cubes
564223- 6x6 Stencil: Chevron
563264- Tiny Alphabet Stickers- Divine
569860- Wood Icons in a Box- Flower/LV
570613- Pebbles
571429- Layla
566609- Avante Coral
542634- Petunia Nocturne
565381- Hello Pastel Roses
565404- Hello Pastel Daisies
565947- Mini Sachet- Lakeside
565978- Mini Sachet- Pansy
565886- Labelle Harbor
561451- Serenade Pink
561352- Encore Turquoise

Thank-you for coming by and checking out my post today :). I hope your week is off to a great start! Take care,