The Holiday Planner – How will you use it? *Free Download

I will use my Holiday Planner to keep myself organized this Holiday season. I have big plans for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Thanksgiving dinner will be served at our house this year. So I will be including a shopping list and menu. I will also start collecting any recipes I think I might want to use. This way I can find it all in one place and have them available when I am shopping. How will you use your planner?

Here is a Free Downloadable Shopping List + Menu from Jen Allyson for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and general Holiday that you can put in your Holiday Planner.

Click on the images below to download the PDF files.

Before I can get too excited about the menu, here at the Lake house we are starting a new project…. We need a new wall oven. This means we get to pull out the old one, demo some sheet rock and cut a new hole. After 23 years, wall ovens have changed in size. Lucky for me, Jen posted the most wonderful Project Master List and Project Notes for free download.

And when that new oven is installed, here is a fall family favorite recipe my Grandma Norma always made for us kids.

Ways to Use It- Vintage Findings: All Hollow’s Eve

Are you like me and try to get the most out of your crafting supplies that you can? Karen from The Bald Dragonfly here to show you two quick extra ways to use the gorgeous Vintage Findings: All Hallow’s Eve digital kit available from Design House Digital.

First, how about giving your photos a unique finish by using the digital paper files as an overlay? Most photo editing programs have a layering option. Simply open up your original photo as well as your desired paper choice and then drop and drag. Adjust the layer style and opacity to achieve a new look!

Here’s a look at the unique photo finishes using Linen, Newsprint and Damask papers from the Vintage Findings: All Hallow’s Eve digital kit. (Gosh, aren’t those boys ca-hute? This technique works well with still objects too!)

So after you’ve had your fun adjusting the images, use your new photo on a layout! The image will coordinate perfectly with the other elements in the digital kit. I decided upon the Damask print to use in the following layout.

And if you aren’t really a layout person, digital kits are perfect for card makers too! For a quick and easy card, use a portion of the spec sheet provided with the digital kit as the main image in your card! Crop and print, then score lines and adhere to your card base. Embellish with a coordinating button and twine and you have a fabulous masculine card!

I’m really excited about these techniques and I think it will take my scrapbooking and cardmaking to a new level. I have a bunch of tips and tricks up my sleeve and I can’t wait to show them to you! Thanks!

Make Your Own: Trick or Treat Bag

Halloween will be here before we know it!  Do you have your costume planned?
I am still deciding if I’ll be dressing up in something fun or not.

Even though I don’t have a costume yet, I now have a stylin’ treat bag!

While trolling down the Halloween aisles at various stores, I have never been a fan of the trick or treat bags/buckets/etc they have for sale.
So, I decided to decorate my own by making my own stencil.

To start, I picked up a 3-pack of canvas tote bags from Wal-mart {had I actually planned ahead, I would have used a coupon for Hobby Lobby…but that’s what you get after 9 at night}.

It took me some time to figure out if I was going to decorate both sides or just one side of the bag.  In the end,  I decided to decorate just one side.  Then I had to decide on a design.  I decided to use a word graphic from Jen’s Spooked Halloween Elements digital kit.  After I decided on my design, I traced it on to freezer paper.

I choose to use freezer paper since I don’t have any sort of machine to assist with those duties.  I just used a laptop, pencil, freezer paper, exacto knife, and cutting pad.  When I trace the pattern, I just {lightly} trace it directly on the laptop screen.  {I do this, because it’s a MacBook and has a glass-like screen.}  Otherwise, I would have printed off the design and then use that to trace the pattern on to the freezer paper.

{Yes, the laptop is upside down…it’s easier to trace that way!}

To trace, be sure that the glossy side is down, and that you are tracing on the side that is paper-like.
{The glossy side needs to stay face down, as that is what is used to iron the paper to the fabric/bag.}
Once tracing is completed, cut out the parts of the design that you want to be painted.  And yes, it will take some time.

Next, I ironed the ‘stencil’ on to the bag.  I apologize for the brown spots on the stencil/bag.  I guess that is what happens when you use your iron for crafts and never clean it. 

If you look closely, I also reinsert the ‘insides’ of some of the letters.  I also labeled them, just to be sure they were placed where they were cut from.

Now it’s time to paint!  Since I have a wide variety of acrylic paints, I like to use a textile medium to make my acrylic paints more fabric friendly.  {Be sure to read the instructions on the bottle.  I don’t know how the various brands differ for application instructions.}

I started out with black, then finished off with a mustard yellow.  I decided to go with the mustard instead of orange…because of the accessories I wanted to use.  Plus, it just works! 

One thing to remember when painting on fabric, be sure that you do more of a ‘sponging’ technique.  This means to not drag your paint brush across the freezer paper/fabric.  Dab the paint brush up and down.  {Had I had an actual sponge brush, this would have been easier.}  If you want to give your letters/design a more rustic/worn look, you will just go a little lighter on the amount of paint you are applying.

Once you finish painting, let it dry completely.  After the paint has dried, carefully pull the freezer paper off.  It seems that any time I do this, I do need to use my exacto knife to help get some small pieces off.

Now have fun with accessorizing the bag any way you see fit!  I added a couple of buttons, one on each side of ‘OR’.  Then I added some trim from the Stella Rose Hattie “Boy” Trim collection.  {As I’m sitting here now, I am wondering how I can also add the velvet light blue trim to this bag.  I might be adding it later!}  To attach the buttons and trim, I just used my trusty glue gun.

And here is my final product!  I love it!  Now, I just need to find a reason to use it.  Maybe I can use it for handing out candy to any trick or treaters that stop by.

If you have kids and if they are old enough, have them help you!  Let their little creative minds help with designing a bag they would be proud to use this Halloween, as well as Halloweens to come.  {Just be sure that an adult is the one doing any cutting with an exacto knife or any gluing with the hot glue gun.}

Have a fantastic weekend!

How to: add patterned paper in your home decor

I’m really excited to be a part of Jen’s team! I’ve always loved her work…simply amazing and beautiful! We are so lucky to be able to have her designs printed in scrapbook paper, fabric, and available for digital/hybrid crafting!

Today I want to share how to add patterned paper to your home decor. In my kitchen, {last kitchen I should say, we just moved!} I simply framed one of my absolute favorite pieces of patterned paper, this polka dot from the Lost & Found Union Square “Home Sweet Home” Collection.

It couldn’t be more perfect, being polka dots and all, and the collection is called Home Sweet Home!

This lovely polka dot paper is also available in digital paper too,  perfect for using in digital scrapbooking, hybrid projects, home decor…just like I did. *these papers are perfect for Halloween projects too!

So find paper that goes with the colors of your home decor, cut it down to fit your frame, and stage it in with your home decor…see simple and stunning!

I love to group together different frames and mix in home accents on a shelf…it makes it so much more visibly pleasing than just hanging a frame on a wall above a shelf! And you don’t necessarily have to run out to the store and purchase something new, go through your home decor and see what you can add to your collage of decor, surely you will find something!

I hope I’ve inspired you to go out and see what you have in your scrapbook paper stash {because if you’re like me, you probably have 2 or 3 of each of your favorite papers!} and frame some beautiful paper!

Digital frames used: Real Simple Grunge Frames and Vanity Fair Cerulean Frames from Design House Digital.

Welcome “The Project Girls” our new site contributors!

First of all, I want to thank all the awesome crafty ladies who sent me entries for the new contributor team. I was in awe all the great talent and creativity! I was originally planning on bringing on 4 contributors, but I could not help myself and I did the best I could to narrow it down to 7! Oh my!! I guess we’re going to be having fun and getting A LOT of inspiration. For those of you who did not make it, I’m so sorry!! I wish I could have all of you on the team! All of the entries were so great and it really was hard to narrow it down… even to 7.  So without further ado, here are the new creative contributors (I totally stole these photos from their blogs. hehe.)!

Nicole from Farmgirl Chaos

Alicia from Love Life and Celebrate

Karen from The Bald Dragonfly

Melody from The Sunflower Crafter

Angie Hinksman

Deena from That I Would Be Good

Candi from My Welchy

That’s seriously a good lookin bunch right there!! But they don’t get paid for their looks… okay they don’t getting paid at all… but if their creative projects and articles are half as cute as they are, we’ll have a lot of fun inspiration from these project girls.

Welcome to the team girls! I can’t wait to be see what you create!