pretty paper. true stories. {and scrapbooking classes with cupcakes.}

Well, clearly if it’s National Scrapbook Day, there should be scrapbooking. Even if I am constantly puzzled by the ‘national’ in the title, when it seems to have branched out a bit. Never mind! There are other worldwide events days today, but as I have no garden, I have not taken any part! (Go on. Ask Google. I will never own up to who told me!)

So I have done three scrapbooking related things, on this lovely NSD:

*replaced my black ink cartridge (i never have a spare. WHY? why do i never have a spare? i never learn. even today i only bought one.)

*made the layout above, from one of Ali’s everyday beauty challenges at her online NSD party (were there hats? and cupcakes? i think there should have been.)

*made the layout below as my little project a day.

But that also involved playing in photoshop, with Jessica’s nifty little montage tutorial. I need more practice. But I digitally altered something in some little way, which let’s face it, is a bit weird. For me, I mean. The last time I printed my journaling was in 2002. It’s a long story.

I will come clean now and admit: I have felt like the plague this week. You know, that totally modern plague called tonsillitis. Seriously, you can get this as a grown up? So not cool. BUT today marked a turning point involving standing up for more than five minutes AND leaving the house. I was so excited. Even if watching an entire series of Scrubs on DVD made me think being sick wasn’t so bad. So the one thing I have learned is that if you publically challenge yourself to do something every day, your body may very well have other plans. These two pages were my celebration. Simple, imperfect and just for fun. Which is okay sometimes too.

Okay, time to share the love. Make a layout with a heart somewhere in it—big and bold or small and hidden—and upload it somewhere this week. Post in the comments with a link to it. I have decks of heart shaped playing cards to send to six lucky scrapbookers somewhere in the world. Comment by 9pm London time on Friday the 11th.

xlovesx

Comment [18]

I drink way too much take-away coffee. And I can’t be the only one. And since it’s knitting Friday, I thought I’d play with something that could declare my coffee love while also keep a bit more cardboard out of a landfill.

Before you say it, yes, I have several refillable coffee cups. Well, two. So definitely in the plural. I try. But I fail. I don’t have a regularly scheduled coffee stop, so I don’t have my cup with me. Yes, I really, really need to fix this and stop all the madness of paper cups. But I guess this is a baby step.

Here’s a super cool pattern on double-pointed needles, but I decided to try a little something different and I needed to see it flat to see if it was working, so my pattern doesn’t look much like that one now.

My eyes have gotten too tired looking at the last two rows, so I’ll have to finish it in the morning, but I’ve done nearly all of it, so it’s still knitting Friday, right? :) ETA: finished!

I Heart Coffee Cup Cozy
Needles: 3.5mm
Yarn: 2 colours of baby weight—I used Jaeger Matchmaker 4ply and Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino, but there’s tons that would work easily. And you need significantly less than 1 ball of each. Like mere inches of the contrast colour, even.

With main colour, cast on 72 stitches.
The first four rows are 4×4 rib, so knit 4, purl 4 and repeat until the end of the row, for four rows.
Row 5: knit.
Row 6: purl.
Row 7: knit 18, join contrast colour and knit 1, return to main colour and knit to end.
Row 8: purl in main colour until one stitch before the contrast colour on the row before. This time you want three stitches in contrast, then return to main colour and purl to the end.
Row 9: knit in main colour until one stitch before the contrast. This time you want five stitches in contrast, then return to main colour and knit to end.
Row 10: purl in main colour until one stitch before the contrast. This row has seven stitches in contrast, then return to main colour and purl to end.
Row 11: knit in main colour until the contrast (not one before). Knit three stitches in contrast, one in main, three in contrast. Return to main colour and knit to the end.
Row 12: purl in main colour until the contrast. Purl two stitches in contrast, three in main, two in contrast. Return to main colour and purl to the end.
Row 13: knit in main colour until the contrast. Knit two stitches in contrast, three in main, two in contrast. Return to main colour and knit to the end.
Row 14: purl, all in main colour.
Row 15: knit.
Row 16 starts the 4×4 rib again, just like at the beginning. Repeat up to row 20, and cast off in the 4×4 pattern.

For the finishing, you’ll need a cup to wrap it around, plus a needle and thread or yarn. Wrap it around the cup and pin the top and bottom for a good fit, then stitch that edge. I have overlap in mine, so I don’t burn my hands! Stitch it up, and baste the loose edge in place and you’re done…though it could look extra cute with buttons and things, you know.

Don’t forget to comment on the felt post to be entered in the drawing for the giveaway. :)

xlovesx

Comment [12]

We’ve been on a real mango kick here. The boy mastered a gorgeous veggie & mango curry, we’ve been making mango frapuccino lassi in our new blender (we so love a good bargain gadget!) and with one mango left in the fruit bowl, cupcakes seemed a must.

Instead of icing, we served these with a marshmallowy sauce and mango puree. Summer yum. So I thought I’d share the love.

Mango Cupcakes
(makes about 20 standard sized cupcakes)

Ingredients:
1 US stick or 1/2 UK stick unsalted butter (about 125g)
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup coconut milk (or regular milk if you don’t like coconut)
1 very ripe mango, mashed
1/3 cup mango puree (tinned or fresh, although you may need to add a bit of sugar to the fresh)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Heat oven to 180C/350F and line cupcake tin with papers.

With butter at room temperature, beat with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add sugar and mix on high for another two minutes.
Mix in egg yolks and vanilla until even.
Add flour, baking powder, spices and salt in alternation with coconut milk and mango puree. Mix on low until even.
Stir in mashed mango until well distributed.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form.
Stir into the cake mixture.
Pour immediately into cupcake papers, about 3/4 full.
Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a chopstick comes out clean.

Mango Marshmallow Cream
(makes a big bowl)

Ingredients:
4 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1 US stick or 1/2 UK stick unsalted butter (about 125g)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup mango puree

With the whisk attachment on an electric mixer, whisk egg whites and sugar in a glass bowl, over a saucepan of simmering water. Continue to whisk until mixture is thick and hot to the touch.
Remove from heat and mix in butter, in small pieces.
Add remaining ingredients and continue to mix until well distributed, with a fluffy marshmallow consistency.
Let cool and serve over cakes, with additional mango puree drizzled on top.

Whatever your heart-shaped desserts this week, I hope you’ll share the love!

xlovesx

Comment [5]

When did you clear your fridge door? When I took everything off today, I was embarrassed that I was saving things long past their expiry date—and I don’t mean the food inside the fridge, but the notices, letters and coupons stuck to the front. In fact, we recently cleared our entire fridge and cupboards, doing some of that replacing that has to be done now and then…like when the herbs have just had it and you realise you are physically incapable of finishing a bottle of salad dressing before it develops a lifestyle of its own. But we didn’t clear a single thing from the door.

So that is what I did today. Because I don’t know about you, but I have days where I have trouble fitting it all in. (Please don’t tell. This has to be our little secret!) But I need a crafty fix to keep me smiling. Today I had ten minutes, but I also had some photos that were just sitting there, some stickers, some stamps and some fridge magnets. You have all that too, right?

Find a few photos, make a few captions and you’re off. I’m going for the happy kitchen effect. I stumble into the kitchen in the morning (so not a morning person!) so a few happy photos and pretty colours are way better for 6am me than a survey from the electric company and a so-so cherry crumble recipe that I haven’t found a chance to improve. You could even use magnet tape or the magnet cartridge on your Xyron to make your own magnets if you wanted something a bit more permanent. Or take your favourite letter stickers, laminate them on blocks of cardstock, stick magnets on the back and you’ve got your very own magnet letters to spell things out.

But I like using my own magnets because not only do I like my little magnets but then when I switch things around, I could use the captions and photos in my scrapbook easy peasy. So I haven’t wasted supplies. I’ve just made them dual purpose. The joy. (My dual-purpose supplies included Heidi Swapp and American Crafts stickers and stamps from Making Memories and Banana Frog.)

Speaking of photos, my friend, neighbour, magazine teammate and fellow unbelievably tall person, Cheryl, is running an online photography course. It’s ten weeks, with a new topic each week and an assignment to try. It’s not technical stuff and you don’t need a fancy camera. It’s more about what goes through your head when you’re snapping away—how to improve your framing, how to get cool looks with movement and light, how to take a picture with some power rather than something blah. I got a little sneak peek while she ran a guinea pig session and it was a blast. You’ve only got till the 4th to sign up, so have a read before it’s too late. And when her session is finding down, you can sign up for a favourite photos album here too, in case you want to tie the two together.

What are you waiting for? Get off the computer and clean your fridge. Or other central messaging point that needs a happy face. Share the love.

xlovesx

Comment [7]

If you ever want to alienate a teenager, get rid of your television.

The kids are continually amazed that I can exist without a TV (so are the folks at TV licensing, but that’s a different matter) and about once a week, a student will come up to me and ask ‘Is it true?’ When I confirm their worst fears, they immediately want to know what on earth I could do when I should be watching TV.

I suppose this is sorta it.

I tell them I have plenty of other things to do. So here is the first one: sewing little things from felt to wear. Because it’s Tuesday. You can totally do this.

You’ll need some felt, some thread, a needle, scissors, a safety pin, some sort of stuffing and a few buttons.

Since May is all about sharing the heart-shaped love, we’re going with a heart shape straight away. Using a template or freehanding it, cut a heart from felt in a size appropriate to what you want to make. Little for a hair pin, medium for a label pin and giant for a pillow. Once you get one heart just as you like it, use it to cut a second just the same.

Choose one of those hearts and add whatever decoration you would like. You might cut another smaller heart and stitch it on, then add some buttons. You might stitch your name or a word straight across the felt. Or you might wish you could freehand cut a bird, realise you have a bird the right size on a stamp, stamp that bird onto felt, cut it out and turn it over, then stitch it town and add some sparkly buttons for it to sit on. Or you might do something else.

Sew a safety pin to the back of the other heart (make sure you get the right side to make the two hearts line up). Or sew whatever else you want to attach here, like a hair clip or a shoelace. Don’t be tempted to sew the safety pin before your design—that will be the time you totally goof and want the other heart for a do-over. So safety-pin second just in case.

Then for the sewing…you’ll need plenty of thread (it takes more than you may guess) and a needle. Read Heather’s tutorial for the best knot ever. It really is.
Hold the two hearts together, just as they should be when they are finished. With that knot in your thread, go to the dip in the middle of the heart. Start with the needle in between the two layers, going up through the top one. Take the needle down to the bottom heart and push back up to the top so that first stitch is secure. Then just keep stitching around, pushing the needle up from the bottom to the top and back again. Stop when you get nearly all the way around, but not quite. You need to have room to add the stuffing. Push the stuffing in (these are little so you can use cotton balls or scrap yarn or whatever else is fluffy if you don’t have traditional stuffing handy) and move it around until you’re happy with it—it’s harder to even it out once it’s sewn in. Then finish your stitches around to where you started, and make sure the last few stitches are nice and secure with a knot. (Don’t worry too much—the back won’t show so if it gets a bit scary, just stitch through to the back and knot it there and no one but you will ever know.)

Pin to something and smile everytime someone asks you where you got such an adorable thing.

Now here’s the fun part: if you make something inspired by this, I hope you’ll share it with everyone! Here’s a badge you can display if you post it on your blog or something like that:

That way, you can share the love by linking back to the instructions if someone wants to know how you made it. :) Plus if you heart flickr, you can post your pictures in the Share the {Crafty} Love Flickr Group By the end of May, it should be filled with images, since there’s a project pretty much every day in May! {I’m just gonna keep saying that because it’s fun.}

And one more thing: I’ve got a lovely little sampler of felt to give to one lucky person who comments on this post. Entries will close one week from today, so 9am London time on Tuesday 8th May. (Just to clarify: you don’t have to be in the UK to win. Anywhere is cool!)

xlovesx

ETA: turning comments off as this one seems to be spam target o’ the day on the internets.

Comment [105]

So here’s the deal:
May is a beautiful month.
It is also completely insane for teachers.
May has two national holidays in this country, so therefore two beautiful three day weekends.
And SATs exams for all of year 9.
May has more weddings than any other month in England.
And the beginning of GCSEs.
May has parades and blue skies.
And lots of paperwork involving HB pencils, small bubbles and triplicate carbon paper.

Clearly I need something to divert me a little each day so I may keep my sanity.
Or lose it entirely.

And with that, I offer you…
A project pretty much every day. For all of May.

It will be a month of things to make with hearts. A different type of project for each day of the week. We have been missing the cupcake love here, so Thursdays are for heart-related cupcakes. Tuesday is for hearts of felt. We’ll scrapbook hearts on a Monday and knit them on a Friday…and so on and so forth. I heart handmade, after all. Little projects you can do with a bit of chill time. Crafts that go with a cup of coffee. Oh the happy.

Starting tomorrow, a project pretty much every day. Oh the goodness. And there is extra goodness I am not even telling you about yet. Super secret!

So rather than go insane with spring fever, let’s get crafty.
Who’s in??

xlovesx

Comment [35]

So happy to see so many Alice inspired projects this weekend. Definitely a happy thing!

So on to the real event of the evening: winners! We had guests, so I had them pick a number for each project, and our winners are:

For Drink Me, Nat is our winner! :)

And for Box of Sweets, congrats go to Sarah!

Please email me your snail mail address so I can get some prezzies out to you in the post! :)

Thank you all for your crafty goodness…I hope you had a wondermous weekend! (I am totally stealing the word of one of our dinner guests there, to give credit.)

See you tomorrow to announce the completely INSANE idea that starts on Tuesday. If I don’t chicken out tomorrow, that is! Oh, the suspense.

xlovesx

Comment [6]

Down the Rabbit Hole
‘Curiouser and curiouser!’ cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English); `now I’m opening out like the largest telescope that ever was! Good-bye, feet!’ (for when she looked down at her feet, they seemed to be almost out of sight, they were getting so far off). ‘Oh, my poor little feet, I wonder who will put on your shoes and stockings for you now, dears? I’m sure I shan’t be able! I shall be a great deal too far off to trouble myself about you: you must manage the best way you can;—but I must be kind to them,’ thought Alice, ‘or perhaps they won’t walk the way I want to go! Let me see: I’ll give them a new pair of boots every Christmas.’

And she went on planning to herself how she would manage it. ‘They must go by the carrier,’ she thought; ‘and how funny it’ll seem, sending presents to one’s own feet! And how odd the directions will look! ALICE’S RIGHT FOOT, ESQ. HEARTHRUG, NEAR THE FENDER, (WITH ALICE’S LOVE).
Oh dear, what nonsense I’m talking!’

Just then her head struck against the roof of the hall: in fact she was now more than nine feet high, and she at once took up the little golden key and hurried off to the garden door.

Poor Alice! It was as much as she could do, lying down on one side, to look through into the garden with one eye; but to get through was more hopeless than ever: she sat down and began to cry again.
-Lewis Carroll

Class Supplies
This is definitely a stash project. The only tricky thing you need is the photo—it needs to be the full width of your page. So if you’re doing a 12×12 page, you can use a 12×8 or similar size print. If you need to print on an A4 printer, you can do a 9×9 page with a 9×6 photo. You can even go as small as a 4×6 photo on a 6×6 page.

Aside from your photo, you’ll need the cardstock for your background, some patterned paper, some lettering for your title and some accents to match. I used scraps for everything aside from the cardstock rather than cutting into new sheets. I also used a journaling stamp from Banana Frog.

Instructions
This will definitely be less frustrating than stretched out Alice right now. The sketch is simple—one giant photo, plus a place for a title and a place for an accent. Your journaling can go in either of those two places, or in the gaps left either side. You can use the sketch for a landscape (horizontal) photo, or turn it for a portrait (vertical) one. The instructions are written for the horizontal orientation.

Choose a colour for your background and some patterned paper to coordinate. Cut a two inch strip of patterned paper as wide as your page. Place this along the bottom of your photo and place both of those on the page to judge the spacing. With a border of background at the bottom, adhere the patterned paper, then the photo over the top to leave enough pattern showing for your liking.

Cut a rectangle of patterned paper for the opposite side of the photo, where your title will go. Adhere this so it overlaps on top of the photo.

Choose one or more styles of lettering to layer your title on top of the patterned rectangle. Try letting some of the letters go beyond the patterned paper.

Choose some accents and secure them to the other side, overlapping on top of the photo.

Add your journaling. I stamped a box with lines on patterned paper, then cut it out. On this layout, I placed it with the accents, but on the second it fit right into the title box, so try it in both places to see what looks best with your photo. You can also journal straight onto the cardstock in the empty corners. Feel free to embellish to your heart’s desire, but this one is done! Go take a photo, upload and claim your points!

Here’s a second take, using a portrait photo and using a bit more embellishment. Adapt to your style however you like: the challenge is to use a BIG photo with two areas of embellishment to the page.

I hope you enjoy something bold but fast to create!

If you upload your page and post a link in the comments for the Box of Sweets post at shimelle.com, you will be entered in the draw for a bonus prize. Good luck!

For more information about the cybercrop, visit UKScrappers.

xlovesx

Comment [121]