Handmade Holidays Blog Hop Going on Now!

Click here to go to the Zutter Bind It All Blog!

Add caption

Well Show Us Some Digital Layouts, Lady!

I made these layouts with StoryBook Creator Plus 3.0 and the Discover Power Palette in Digital. 

God's Love

I just made my first ever, mini-book with my Bind-It All, my Cricut Imagine, and cardboard toilet paper rolls!

Recipe:
Country Carnival Imagine Cartridge
4 empty toilet paper rolls flattened:  leave the last roll the full length and cut each successive roll going toward the top by removing 3/4 of an inch, then 1 1/2, then 2 1/4 respectively. 
Cut four pieces of cardboard to fit inside each of the flattened toilet rolls with at least 1/2 sticking out for scripture tags and attaching the letters L O V E.
hole puncher or binding tool and accessories.  I used the 3/4 in O wire with the Bind-It All
double sided tape
fibers
inks/chalks
computer printed words and Bible Scripture.  Leave 3/4 of an inch from the right edge of the quote free from wording to attach the letters.  See below

I also decorated the back but forgot a picture of it! 
I am finally starting to have a lot of fun with my Imagine!  This piece may go up for sale!
Natalie

Exciting Launch of New Cricut Blog

http://cricutblog.org/Hey folks!  Sorry it has been months since I have posted!  I have been so busy with the kids and serious horrible colds and honest craft burnout that I couldn't even look at scrapbooking stuff without throwing up in my mouth a little.  That's what happens when I get really sick and depressed from being sick. 
ANYWAY........the reason you are reading this post.....Cricut is launching a new blog and it looks to be pretty terrific and is inspired by the Cricut Circle DT.  Check it out here.

Hope to see you soon!  I had to get my Imagine print cartridges replaced and now I am back in business!
Natalie 

In Pursuit of the Picture

I am not sure if any of you know but I can juggle! Really! And I bet you can too! So with all the bowling pins, flaming torches, and swords that you've already got flying around your head, it might be fun to add to your crafting pursuits, some graphic arts and photographic know-how!

Now, my educational bend is in the Marriage and Family Therapy and Psychology world and although I can read the directions for operating a digital camera, my degrees don't translate to knowing everything in the whole wide world! Really!

With that said, I am trying to learn as much as I can about graphic design and photography for free! I am studying others' work, and finding out what theory drives their creations. To some that sounds like I'm trying to suck the beauty out of the rainbow, but if I'm going to create the way I want, and I can't afford to submit myself to an expert, then it's time to surf the waves of the web!

I came across an article about how to take effective photographs. I liked it, maybe you will find it helpful, too! Alibony.com

I also found a couple links for studying the concept of "The Rule of Thirds".  You can google it as "rule of thirds".
Wikipedia
Digital Photography School.com

You can also google terms like "design elements, design principles, photography 101", etc.

I also discovered this great tool for finding coordinating colors for my pictures, Scrapbook.com Scrap By Color.

Made Out Like a Bandit!

This past week on the 7th, I turned 36!  I had a very scrappy Birthday!  I wanted to share some of the stuff that I was blessed with: a Zutter Bind It All and many different colors of binding wires. The actual products I got are like the pictures below but the o-rings were different. The Zutter came with a DVD, instructions and even template cards to help you figure out where to set the binder for different thicknesses. I also got the space bar that helps bring the holes closer to the edge of the paper.  It also came with a 4 x 4 sample book kit and a 6 x 6 book kit.  These kits included chipboard and white paper already cut.   My hubby got them at Flip Flops and Roses Designs, an e-Bay top-rated seller who also sell Sizzix and Spellbinders.  The have all
kinds of great stuff.




I also got a mini sewing machine with a pedal that can use DC or AA batteries.  It does a regular chain stitch.  I also got a Martha Stewart scoring board and envelope tool.

I was also blessed with 4 new Cricut blades which I really needed. I had been talked into just trying Pazzles blades in it because they were cheaper by some other crafter, but the adjustments I had to make were not worth the cost to me. I also received Michael's Gift Certificates and I had some online credit I used to order some supplies from Scrapbook.com.

I also got some great scrapbook supplies in the mail yesterday from an up and coming Scrapbook designer. I was given these supplies by Groovy Deb at If It's Groovy. I am so excited and we will be sharing who this special crafter is and what the If It's Groovy Design Team has made with her designs very soon, so stay posted!

Winner of Blog Candy!

I used www.random.org to choose a winner for the blog candy I had.  Thanks for all the future blog candy ideas and for sharing with me whether or not you do resolutions and what your goals are for 2011.  I pray that all of you get your hearts desires!

Now for the winner.  I had 13 non-repeating original comments and so entered 1-13 in the random number generator.

So the 7th person to comment was Karen Patterson!  I left a message over at your blog, too, so let me know your e-mail addy so I can get your home addy and send the goodies out! 
Check out her blog Treasured Dreams.

A Couple Favorites

I forgot to add this at the beginning of the year!  My bad! And Blogger erased half of the ones I put in my post for recaps and most of the fashion and trend links I had up!  Argh!

At the end of each year, many full-time bloggers do recaps of their favorite posts and videos.  Will I be doing that?  No, not this year.  I just started doing videos and now that I fave figured out how to do them and how much time it takes, I need to iron out the kinks in my process!  So maybe that is a goal for next year!  Anyhoo.... my forte is to share with you some of those bloggers who are doing recaps!

Top 12 Cricut Crafting Videos of 2010 by Above Rubies Studio

Everyday Cricut Best Cricut Projects/Cartridges of 2010

Joy's Life updated Cricut Cartridge Checklist

Pink Cricut top favorite posts of 2010

I am also going to post links to some of the sites which showcase what is to be hot in the fashion world for the next few months and throughout the year. 
Color Trends from Squidoo