9 Projects from 2009

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas. We were able to spend some time with my husband's family over the weekend. The kids get so big so quickly. They run everywhere now!

I was reading Danielle Flanders' blog last week and she had a great idea to repost 9 projects she enjoyed from 2009. So, I'm doing the same. This past year, I've made many new scrapbooking friends and discovered so many creative blogs that I enjoy following. I've really developed my style even more and stepped outside my creative box to create some projects that seemed to come out of nowhere! Here are 9 of my favorites.

The Fairy Tea Party is of the most elaborate altered art project that I've attempted so far. I enjoy creating things that have a "story" to them, and this piece has many to tell.

"Shall I Dance for You" is an altered tag using several layers, techniques, and products. I was so happy with how she came out. She's been hanging above my creative space ever since.

I made the B-17 Adventure mini book for my husband. He has it proudly displayed on his desk.

I made this baby card for a friend's new grandbaby. It was my first "commissioned" piece :)

This year, I got to meet Tim Holtz! I took a class that he taught at Ten Seconds Studio. It was so much fun! I created this layout of our photo together. It's now framed and hanging above my scrappy space.

This card is the very first project that I've had published. I was so excited!

I made this "True Love" card for my husband for our anniversary. I loved the turquoise color and all the elements I had in that color to embellish it with.

My "Enter If You Dare" Halloween mini book was so much fun to put together. I loved all the vintage images and spooky layers.

Finally, during one of my visits to NJ, I captured my niece playing in the garden. She continually tried to pick up this large rock with her teeny tiny fingertips. Every time, she exhaled "Stuck!" when she finally gave up. Then tried it all over again.

I hope 2010 brings you many happy surprises, creative inspiration, and wonderful memories with family and friends.

Happy New Year!

Weekend Fun

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas! My husband and I spent a quiet day at home. On Christmas Eve, it snowed - all day. This is the first time I have seen a white Christmas in Texas.

One of my gifts was such a surprise - a trunk full of vintage jewelry and "stuff" to use in my projects.

This treasure chest has been sitting under the tree for a month and I was secretly trying to guess what could be in it. This is not what I expected! I also received a new sewing machine, so I can do some stitching on my cards and layouts and hopefully put it to use creating some fabric collages.

We spent the weekend in Houston visiting husband's family. And then, yesterday I got to go here:

Archiver's! In Houston. The closest Archiver's to us is in Austin, three hours away. So when I found out there is an Archiver's in Houston, I made sure we had to stop on the way home.

It reminded me of the Recollections stores that we used to have.

I bought a few goodies, but my favorite purchase is this:

A Dymo Caption Maker. I love my Dymo label maker, but when I saw script font on a Dymo label on one of Tim Holtz's 12 Tags of Christmas, I had to have it. I had no idea where he got it, but I wanted it. While browsing through Archiver's, I spotted it! Now it's mine. I'm hoping to spend some time this week working on some layouts that I have long neglected. I'll be loading up this bad boy to try out.

Merry Christmas from Zunky Chic

Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas and a festive New Year.

Christmas Gift Bag Recycling

Today is my monthly post on the MOSD blog. Please go check it out and leave me some love! For my project, I reused a gift store shopping bag to create a Christmas gift bag.

I didn't want to use the twisted paper handles that the bag came with, so I just cut off the top of the bag. I cut a piece of 8x8 paper down to fit the width of the bag, and then cut a strip to adhere across the top. I punched the edge of this strip with a border punch for added style. I adhered both of these papers to the bag. Next, I adhered patterned paper to the MOSD chipboard Postage Stamp Build A Book page, which becomes the focal point and matt for the sentiment. On top of the covered chipboard page, I added a torn piece of sheet music, and then a chipboard frame with sentiment.

 
To replace the handles that I removed, I cut holes in the top with my Crop A Dile and then knotted a length of ribbon through each hole. Now I have pretty handles that match my bag.
 
With just a couple of days left before Christmas, this is a project that you can quickly put together using supplies that you already have.

Special Occasion Christmas Cards

I love sending special Christmas gifts and cards for special Christmas occasions. A friend of mine recently purchased her first home with her husband. This is their first Christmas in the new home, so I wanted to make a card that would commemorate the holiday.

I used Anna Griffin Christmas paper for the background and used the reverse side of the paper to cover a house-shaped page from a Maya Road chipboard mini book. I covered the roof area with dress pattern paper and added a Melissa Frances keyhole. I bleached a mini bottle brush tree until it was creamy white. Then I cut off the bristles on one side and adhered to the card using Glossy Accents. The "Merry Christmas" is a mini ornament that I bought in a set from Hobby Lobby.

This card was one of my favorites. I love the soft colors that are a bit non-traditional.

More Christmas Gift Tags

I made several different styles of Christmas gift tags this year. Here are some of my favorites. I made them using supplies that I already had: scraps of paper, manilla shipping tags, Christmas embellishments, and vintage papers and trims.

For this first tag, I used a scrap of brown packing paper that was leftover after shipping some gifts. I cut it into the shape of a tag and added vintage sheet music and a scrap of Crate Paper patterned paper. The sticker inspired the addition of the mini bottle brush tree. I glued the tree on with Glossy Accents, added a few dots of Stickles, and tied on a ribbon scrap. I punched a hole at the top, and added a brad and baker's twine.

For The Gift of Christmas tag, I adhered sheet music and dress pattern paper to a cardstock base, and then added an image from a mini art book that I bought at Goodwill. The K&Co glittered frame puts the focus on Mary and Jesus. I created the title on my computer, printed it out, and distressed with ink. A little piece of gold trim at the bottom completes this sparkly tag.

For The Spirit of the Season tag, I again used the brown packing paper and layered sheet music and vellum on top. I used a calligraphy pen to write out the sentiment. The glittery star was part of a pack of tiny Christmas ornaments that I bought at the $1 store. I added vintage trim at the bottom and tied on several strands of ribbon, twine, and fibers.

Lastly, is the little Wish tag. I used scraps of red card stock and American Crafts patterned paper. The "wish" sticker is from a pack of K&Co glittered stickers that I bought last year. The fabric star is from a set of Jesse James Dress It Up buttons. I tied on green and white baker's twine and this little tag was complete.

Santa Baby

I really stepped out of my comfort zone for this card. I love seeing other people's projects using non-traditional Christmas colors. I've been especially drawn to the new trend of red, pink, and turquoise. So, I gave it a try.

I used the vintage image as my inspiration, and only used paper and embellishments if they were red, pink, or turquoise. I added silver into the mix to give it a little sparkle. The striped paper is from American Crafts. The white and silver paper is from Anna Griffin.

The turquoise pom-pom trim is from Webster's Pages and I had some vintage hot-pink lace in my stash - just perfect for this project. I added some rhinestones to up the sparkle and created the title using my Dymo label maker.

This little hottie is already under the tree waiting to be opened on Christmas day.

Mini Cards

After Christmas last year, I bought a box of Die Cuts with a View mini Christmas cards. I figured they'd be a great base to embellish and make little tags or cards to tuck into the holiday treat boxes that I make. Here are a few that I did this year.

I love the pink stripes on this card, but didn't care for the "Season's Greetings" sentiment at the bottom, so I covered it up.The pink card inspired me to create a card with non-traditional Christmas colors: pink, black, and white. I used a scallop circle punh to punch a piece of sheet music. I put a black Thickers snowflake in the center of the sheet music. To cover the sentiment at the bottom, I glued down a piece of black and white ribbon from the $1 bin at Michael's. Then I used my Dymo label maker to make a new "Be Merry" title, which I just stuck on top of the ribbon. This little card packs so much style, and I used supplies that I already had on hand.

After making a little pile of the pink cards, I moved onto another pattern in the card pack. I embellished these cards with Fancy Pants holiday die cuts.

These cards came together pretty quickly and I still have plenty left over to make for next year.

You Better Watch Out...

There's still time to get your Christmas cards made and mailed before the big day, but you better hurry. Here's one that I made with a new Santa stamp that I bought at Michael's. I liked the card so much that I made a stack of them to send out to my friends.

I made them using different patterned paper backgrounds and vintage trims, different shapes and sizes, but the basic design is the same.

I stampted the image onto white cardstock and cut it out. Then I used colored pencils to color in Santa, and Antique Linen Distress Ink on the stamped sheet music. I layered a piece of vintage sheet music behund the stamped image as a matt to help it stand out on the dark or busy patterned paper.

My favorite part of the card is the sentiment. The cover reads "He knows if you've been bad or good..."
The inside reads "You better leave extra cookies."

Winter Shadow Box

This project was also inspired by Webster's Pages 12 Days of Christmas Crop. I made a shadow box using an old picture frame.

I bought a (tacky) plastic frame with a worn painting for $1 at Goodwill. I removed the painting and coated the frame with gesso and then a layer of Picket Fence Crackle Paint. I also added some Distress Ink once the paint was dry.

Then I started building the "box." I cut a piece of cardboard for the back and 1/2" pieces for each side. I covered the front and back of each piece of cardboard with Anna Griffin Christmas paper, then I glued all the pieces together to form the box.

I decorated the box before adhering to the back of the frame. I adhered a piece of wide vintage lace and a vintage French postcard. On the bottom of the inside, I glued batting for my "snow" and a tiny deer I bought on etsy, along with a mini bottle-brush tree. Once everything was dry, I adhered my frame on top.

The bird and banner on top of the frame were cut from an antique Christmas postcard.

The tree is cut from a piece of Webster's Pages Christmas Petite Papers. The silver tinsel on the tree is Webster's trim. I added tiny rhinestones and Pearl Accents to the tree. Around the bottom of the tree, I added more batting and glued on Sparkle Snow that I bought at Anthropologie.

I have my little shadow box displayed with some other antique goodies for Christmas.

Christmas Acrylic Album

I was inspired by Webster's Pages 12 Days of Christmas projects last month to make an acrylic Christmas album using photos from last year's Christmas season. I used a Clear Scraps scallop-tabbed album, Anna Griffin, My Mind's Eye, and Webster's Pages paper with Webster's embellishments and stickers.

For the cover, I placed a piece of patterned paper under the acrylic and a cut-out piece of Webster's vellum on top of the acrylic. I outlined the acrylic cover with Icicle Stickles. The mini CD case is the packaging from Webster's journaling cards. I covered this with more paper and a gorgeous Prima flower and velvet leaf, with a vintage button center.

The rest of the cover is embellished with more Prima flowers, a Webster's cameo, and some holly leaves and berries. I tied various ribbon scraps onto the binder rings that hold the album together.

Inside the CD case, I placed a photo of my gorgeous nieces and embellished it with Webster's trim, vintage lace, and a ribbon rose made from Webster's trim.

These pages showcase some of the photos from my nieces' Christmas photo shoot. The background paper is Anna Griffin. The pink paper is Webster's , which I crumpled and sprayed with gold Glimmer Mist.

This page uses more Anna Griffin paper, a K&Co Evergreen acetate die-cut, and a scrap of Webster's (the quote).

My niece is now afraid of Santa Claus. She cried her eyes out sitting on his lap, and wouldn't even look at her photo with him. What a great moment to capture for years to come! For this page, I used a page from a Midnight Oil acrylic book to vary the page shape and size.

Here I am with our nephew Jason and making a "rustic" gingerbread house with our niece Layla. I cut out the title, berries, and ornaments from Webster's paper and layered them under the acrylic. On top of the acrylic, I added Icicle Stickles.

The gingerbread house is cut from more Webster's Paper, and adhered with pop-dots for more dimension. I added some Stickles to give it a little sparkle.

While we were visiting my family in NJ, we spent a long day in New York City. We went to all the usual Christmas attractions: Rockefeller Center, the department store windows, and a Broadway show.

My husband surprised us all with a limo to take us into the city and home. It was so nice to not have to drive or take the train. He's so thoughtful. But, now we're all spoiled and will expect a chauffer every time!

A Christmas album would not be complete without Christmas presents! My niece LOVED her slide from my parents. She made sure she had an audience for each trip down! The guys practiced their rock band skills, and I got my Cricut!

Making Vintage Christmas Tags

I've been working on some Christmas tags. I purchased some images from Lisa's Altered Art. She has a great site and each Wednesday, a different sheet is on sale for $1. How can you go wrong for $1?

I've made a few tags, and still have a lot of images left. I printed out the sheet that I purchased onto photo paper, and then embellished here and there with Stickles. I cut out each image and adhered it to a paper scrap and embellished it some more.

Here are a few samples:

The winner is...

Melz said: Congrats, Erica~ Thank you for sharing your amazing creativity!!!!

I'll get your prize package shipped out to you tomorrow. Enjoy it! I hope you'll share photos of some of your creations.

Thank you to everyone who entered. December is already starting off to be a big month on Zunky Chic. I hope you'll stay tuned to see what I have planned for the new year!

Christmas with Webster's Part 2

Yesterday I shared three Christmas cards I made using the Webster's Pages Petite Papers. Here are three more cards that I made using the same papers.

For this first card, I used a sheet of the paper that I distressed, tearing a small section at the top. Behind the torn area, I placed a scrap of another Webster's paper that I accordian folded for dimension. To embellish the tree on the paper, I glued several sequins in different colors. The "be merry" title was created using Webster's alphas. I added a piece of vintage lace along the edge to complete this card.

For this next card, I went a little crazy with the embellishments. I added Tim Holtz Tarnished Brass Crackle Paint here and there around the edge. To the tree on the paper, I added white Pearl Accents. The star is a textured piece of Tim Holtz grunge board. I painted it with a gold paint dabber, then added brown distress ink. The sentiment is written using a calligraphy pen on vellum.

Lastly, my "swan lake" card was created using a full sheet of the patterned paper. In the center, I added  a glittered K&Co frame, backed with vintage sheet music. I cut a piece of vellum to almost fit the center of the frame (I wanted the sheet music to peek out a bit), then added a K&Co rub-on greeting. I added Antique Linen Distress Ink around the entire card.

The Webster's products are so beautiful and inspiring, I am almost afraid to take scissors to them!

Don't forget - you have until noon CT today to enter my prize drawing. See Tuesday's post below for details.

Christmas Cards with Webster's Pages

I am in love with Webster's Pages. I used papers from the 6x6 Petite Papers of Home for the Holidays and Winter's Wings to create some Christmas cards.

For this first card, I used a full sheet of the gorgeous paper, then layered on vintage sheet music and dress pattern paper. I used pop dots to adhere a K&Co Evergreen die cut. I wrapped and tied on a piece of Martha Stewart baker's twine. The glittery holly leaves and berries are from a couple of craft store Christmas picks that I had in my stash.

For this next card, I layered a cut-out piece of the patterned paper on top of another piece of Webster's. A scrap of sheet music is the matting for a title I printed on my computer. I further embellished it with a white Prima trellis rose and velvet leaf, scrap of ribbon, and pearl flourish. I distressed the patterned paper edge with an edge distresser and inked with Tim Holtz Antique Linen Distress Ink before adhering it to a card base.

Finally, I distressed and inked the edge of another sheet of Webster's. In the large center area, I layered vintage sheet music and dress pattern paper with a title created with my Dymo label maker. The velvet ribbon is also from Webster's. It is layered atop vintage eyelet trim from my stash. I added a few rhinestones to the paper's "highlight" areas for more sparkle.

I have a few more Webster's cards that I'll share tomorrow.