Scrappy Update

Hi all,

In the last week I've managed to scrapbook 2 layouts and turn them into videos. I don't think I'm avoiding my work commitments at all! School has started back for Term 2 but I found time for me and got my crafting on!

After cleaning my scraproom during the school holidays I unearthed some papers that I had forgotten were in my stash. Partly this was because I was storing my papers in drawers and then I found that I didn't like looking through the piles in each draw which I had divided by colour. After my big reorganisation I am now storing my papers in a vertical system and they are back organised by company, it's just how my brain works. Anyway I found some papers from October Afternoon (actually I found lots of paper from OA!) the Treasure Map range and created this page:

Here is the video:

I saw the DT call for The Crafty Maven Getaway with only a few days left to submit and I thought I would give it a go. I had to answer some questions and send 2 photos pf recent layouts plus I had to create a video specifically for the call. Well this is what I came up with:

Here is a photo of the layout and some close ups.

I did use the latest sketch from Stuck Sketches for this page. The sketch is:


Plus, I also managed to make 2 lovely young girls a small gift for looking after my pets when I went down south with my family. I decorate a notebook for each girl.

Well that's it for now.
Take care and happy crafting,
Helen xx

Sketch Challenge

Hi all,

I came across a challenge blog called Stick It Down from a post on Facebook I think, love the wonders of social media and decided to play along with this month's single page sketch challenge. this is the sketch:

After cleaning and reorganising my craft room I'm on a kick to use anything that is still sitting unopened or never having been across my desk in the whole time it's been in my craft room (might I add this amounts to quite a large pile of stash!). Anyway, this is my take on the sketch:

I used a stamp set that hadn't seen ink before, star brads that are years old but still in an unopened packet, plus an old Amy Tangerine rub on that I coloured in with Distress Crayon and used as my title. 

Well that's it for now.
Take care and happy crafting,
Helen xx

Winners

Hi all,

I have selected my winners from all the visitors last week during my Growing in Unity posts. Well actually I used a random generator, first I selected the day and then the post number so without further ado the winners are:
    = Colleen Hinesley

  = Barbara Kingston

Ladies, could you please either contact me in the next week that would be great, my email is hjmazengarb@hotmail.com   Thanks

Take care and happy crafting,
Helen xx

Challenge Your Stash YouTube Hop

Hi all,

It's that time of the month again - YouTube hop time! This month we decided to have a tic tac toe challenge, this is the first time ever that I have completed a tic tac toe challenge. I know you are supposed to complete a row/column or diagonal and I completed the right hand column but I almost completed one of the diagonals as well.

This is the layout I created:

Here is the link to my video:

These are the other ladies playing along:

Grace Islander - https://youtu.be/4VqWFLZGRTo

PinkGlitterScrapper Lisa- https://youtu.be/035BdpXmx10

Katelyn Clary- https://youtu.be/UtbmiZMBG98

Also this weekend I have reorganised and rearranged my craftroom. I don't think it has ever looked so neat and tidy. One of the things I did to help me scrap more was to make sure everything can be reached from my chair as basically I'm a lazy crafter and don't enjoy getting up and going through my supplies, I like to be able to roll my chair and reach it otherwise I won't use it. I also bagged my papers and embellishments together to make it easier to find things - well that's the plan but we'll just have to see how it all pans out. Here are some photos from different angles.

Well that's it for now. Have a wonderful Easter and an enjoyable long weekend.

Take care and happy crafting,

Helen xx

Growing in Unity - Day 5

Hi all,

Wow the week is almost over! It's been a great week sharing my projects and reading all the lovely comments about my cards. Thank you very much for all the positive comments. To finish off this week I recorded making my fifth card and have made a video for you, if you're interested.

So, here is today's card:

I used the April 2014 SMAK Kit Wildflowers & Wings. I coloured the flowers with Twinkling H2Os - Raspberry Wine and Ice.

Here is the video, if you're interested.

Well that's it for me. I hope you've enjoyed my sharing this week and found a little spark of inspiration.

Take care and happy crafting,
Helen xx

Growing in Unity - Day 4

Hello all,

Here is today's project:

I had so much fun making this card. I used the flowers from the Canvas Wishes set and the used my Ken Oliver Crafts Color Bursts - Lemon Yellow and Orange to create the watercolour. I also added some of the Liquid Metals over the top. When it was dry I sewed around the border and stamped a quote from the Delightful Little Things set. I used a vellum heart from my stash and cut it into a butterfly shape and stuck it on. Then using a black Dylusions paint pen I went over the flowers and added some dots.

Well that's all for today folks! I have to drive back to Perth with my family as our holiday has come to an end, luckily tomorrow is the start of the Easter long weekend plus I have another week of school holidays. So more crafting time for me.

Please remember to leave a comment below and I'll see you tomorrow for my last day as a GIU Gal!

Take care and happy crafting,
Helen xx

Growing in Unity - Day 3

Hello all,

Here is today's project:

This beautiful stamp was part of my prize pack that I gratefully won a few weeks ago. I stamped it up using Close to My Heart's Sea Glass ink and created the background. I adhered the matching Sea Glass glitter paper and then stamped another heart, it's from the Your Beautiful Heart set. I then stamped a quote from the Heart Strings set over the Sea Glass heart and then fussy cut it out. I mounted it on foam and added some cotton underneath.

Well that's it for today, I hope you like it. Don't forget to leave a comment below as you just never know you too may win some cool stamps.

Take care and happy crafting,

Helen xx

Growing in Unity - Day 2

Hi all,

Welcome back and I hope you had a wonderful Monday. I'm not sure about everyone else but I'm having a lovely time, not only am I enjoying bringing my stamping goodness to you but I am currently on holiday in the gorgeous seaside town of Dunsborough in the south west of Western Australia.

Today's project:

I started out with a white piece of card and inked around the edges with 3 different pink colours from Tim Holtz's Distress Inks - Spun Sugar, Victorian Velvet and Worn Lipstick. I used the little heart from the March 2016 Kit of the Month: A Chance to Change and stamped it randomly in the inked area, just for some added interest. In the centre I stamped this cute owl and the quote from the January 2013 Kit of the Month: All Hearts & Love (not sure if you can get this KOTM anymore but they sell these stamps as a set and that is what I've linked you to). I coloured them in with some markers and then used some Glossy Accents over the 'Be Mine'. A simple but effective one layer card.

Well that's it for today, I'm off to get Simmo's - the best ice cream around!
Take care and happy crafting,
Helen xx

Day 1 - Growing in Unity

Hello all,

Welcome to my blog, especially if this is your first time visiting. I'm really excited to be the GIU Gal this week. This is my third time as a GIU Gal and I thought to myself what can I do different this time . . .  lots of thinking later I decided that I was only going to use stamps that had never seen ink before. Actually wasn't that harder of a decision as I realised that I've been more of a hoarder than a stamper. Having said that my Donna Downey stamps have seen ink many many times plus my Angie Girls and a few others but there were still many packets in my collection in their virgin state.

After looking through all the unused ones I came across this girl and I couldn't resist. Here is today's card:

This girl is part of the March 2016 Kit of the Month: A Chance to Change. I coloured her with Copics and then used a stitched die to cut out the card. I layered her on some Amy Tangerine papers and used an acetate flower for embellishment. I hope you like here.

Please remember to leave a comment below for then you will be eligible to go in the draw, at the end of the week, for a stamp pack. I was very lucky and won a prize a few weeks ago and have used one of the stamps which will appear later in the week.

We that's if for now.

Take care and happy crafting,

Helen xx

Latest Layout

Hi all,

Busy, busy here in Helen land. We are almost on school holidays, only a few more days to go, and what a busy term it has been, assembly, market day, swimming carnival and I went on a school camp as bus driver/cook and had a great 4 days in our south west.

At the moment I am getting my projects ready for next week as I am going to be the returning Growing in Unity Girl plus record a video or two. Added to that my mum surprised the boys and I with a holiday to Dunsborough for next week! So I have to be super organised (which is a feat for me!) and have every post, picture, project ready to go before we leave the house on Sunday! I might not sleep much but I will get it done.

Anyway, I tried out unsuccessfully for another design team, really demonstrating perseverance here! This was the layout I submitted. I'm thinking I need to take better photos of my work or maybe make better layouts.

I inked some circles onto the background through a stencil, added some splatters, stitched around some of the patterned paper circles and added other round embellishments. The photos are of my son Ben and I seven years apart.

A close up of one of the embellishment areas.

Well that's it for now, see you all here next week!

Take care and happy crafting,

Helen xx