Spotted Canary Blog

So dear reader, have you discovered the newest cyber social media craze? The one filled with boards and boards of inspiration and an addictive power so strong that participants are apt to require a 12-step program if and when the server ever goes down?

I know (for those of us already under its spell), gasp! that I could even think about typing such a statement! The absolute horror if that actually happened!

Well, dear reader, if you have yet to succumb to the wiles of the site, I’ll explain how it works …

But first, I must mention that I cannot, well, um, mention the actual name of the site. Yeah, I know, I know. Crazy. But those nervous SC lawyers with all their legalese say it’s a no-no. So with all the strength I can muster (which is not much since I have spent the last five days eating myself into a pre-holiday food coma), I will dutifully suppress my innate need to go against authority and do what they ask.

In the spirit of giving, let’s just call it my holiday gift to them … freedom from court action.

Now back to how it works … let’s say you are out in the cyber world looking at all the amazing things people are creating (which of course means you’d be here at Spotted Canary, right?) and you’ve found a few items you’d like to keep track of for future reference. With the help of an icon on your tool bar, you can not only save the image but the html address as well in your account at the not-to-be-mentioned-web-site (aka the NTBMWS).

But here’s the even better part … it makes my organizational DNA just tingle with delight … you can categorize all your finds into separate files. Want a place to put all those amazing ideas you find here at the Party Time Blog? Just start a file at the NTBMWS titled “All Those Amazing Ideas from the Party Time Blog” and click your way to easy future access.

So where does the social media part fit in? Well, the NTBMWS allows you to follow other people’s files … which means that you can see everything they are adding to them. If you like what you see, you can either add that item to your own file, click to let them know you think its super cool or, make a comment about it. Whenever I log into my account at the NTBMWS, I’m always a bit on pins and needles to see if anyone has validated my favorite finds by re-filing or liking them.

Basically, you connect with other people through the things they find inspiring, yummy or worthy to remember … or in some cases the things they find to be uber hilarious … ok, I’m belly laughing just thinking about some of the funny quotes and pictures I’ve seen … must remember to wear the Depends when viewing those … just a helpful hint from me to you dear reader : ).

Another way this cyber filing system is becoming a social phenomenon is through the popularity of hosting parties dedicated to showcasing participants’ versions of their favorite filed items. A hostess invites followers to share and expound on their experience re-creating a posted project and in some instances, a recipe as well.

Can you say two-fer? A party and my new crazy-in-love addiction? Can you hear the angels singing?

So dear reader … can you guess what I did a few weekends ago? Yep … I hosted one of these two-fers!



The Be Inspired Party





The Invitation

If I had an invitation to show you, I would. I sent an e-mail out to my regular peeps and a few gals who I follow on the NTBMWS. It was all very last minute so I didn’t expect a huge turnout, but thankfully my regs showed up and didn’t grumble too much with all my photo requests (insert mushy stuff about how great these girls are and how much I appreciate them).

My electronic invite asked each guest to bring both a project and recipe they had made from an internet inspiration. When you send your invites out, think about assigning the party a theme such as quick holiday gifts, spring home décor, or before and after re-do’s. A focus will help guests in narrowing down their options as well as keeping party content fresh if you plan on hosting more than one during the year.


The Décor

Since the holidays were/are fast approaching, that seemed like a logical theme. Any chance to lessen my trips to the attic, I’m all for. Jane, my co-hort in all things party, suggested we use turquoise as one of the main colors. Apparently it’s all the rage this season and I’m all for trendy rages : ).





The turquoise of course was teamed up with my standard operating colors, black and silver (predictability is how I roll). I decided my three new cone shaped glitter trees would be a décor jumping off point so you can see that element repeated. My favorite tree? The feathered one that sat on the buffet. So glad I spent the $10 on this one. It makes me happy.





Another repeat component is the ball ornament. There’s a lot of bang for your buck with these simple orbs. I say buy them en masse and in all kinds of colors. At this party they got hung from the chandelier over the food table, piled in bowls and even embellished with letter stickers to spell the party’s mantra. I love the shininess of the glass ones, but if you live in a house with small hands, go for the bucket of plastic ones. Their cheaper too. Indestructible and inexpensive. Two-fer!










The Food

The girls brought some yummy internet inspired treats. Look at those cute reindeers! Super easy and oh so yummy! And the filled gingerbread cups? Oh my! I’m wiping drool off the key board just thinking about those …









The Projects

I designated a table for the girls to exhibit their projects on. Suggestion: have some easels and boxes available for guests to use when setting up their displays.





After everyone arrived, I had each guest show, describe and share tips and tricks with everyone. I don’t know what Leslie said to Jane, but I love her reaction! Priceless.





These projects were all done by Jane. She discovered the magic of Epson salts that week and if it didn’t move, she spread it with decoupage glue and sprinkled it with salt. Instant beautiful snow! Brilliant huh!





Jane also made her very first canvas art. I love the argyle pattern and the overall feeling of whimsy. I’m sure her daughter will love this piece as part of her holiday room décor. I know I would.





Leslie brought a cabochon necklace she had been inspired to make. So pretty … and so hoping one of these is under my tree this year … hint, hint : ).





Polley. Polley. Polley. Big shout out thank you to her for coming over to party when she didn’t feel well. A truly selfless gift … thank you! Apparently her butterfly art almost didn’t make it out of her house because her girls were pining for it so much. She used one of the new EK layering punches to create the butterflies … love. love. love. Her genius moment? She used the kraft colored frame backing as the background. No need for seaming paper. Hello! Brilliant!





Me? What did I do? I vacuumed. There is an art to that you know … just ask my mother. Kidding : ). I attempted to make a few cone trees, one with yarn and another with fabric. If I do this project again, I think I need to find pointy cone shaped bases … these flat topped ones were hard to cover. Just a note to self for next time …






The Parting Gift

I wanted the girls to be able to keep track of the links people were referencing and to also be able to scribble down any tips and tricks they wanted to remember. My first thought was embellished clipboards but after I saw these cute brag books in the dollar bin at my local crafts store, I knew my plans needed to change.





Each page got a cardstock insert that had a space for a link address and how-to notes. I also added a spot for a photo … the intention … take pictures of each of the projects as soon as they arrived and while guests were mingling/eating, print photos so guests could then add them to the book pages. Cool, huh?





I suppose if you had a huge number of guests you could ask everyone to e-mail a picture ahead of time so that photos could be added to the pages before they printed. That would be less stressful and would allow you to mingle too … but I’m never that far ahead in my thought process … you dear reader shall benefit from my lack of foresight : ).


So dear reader, I hope you try one of these internet inspiration parties. I think it would be way fun to host one every quarter. Making them a seasonal tradition.

The way best part of these? Besides the yummy food and time with great friends … you get one more testimonial on how to accomplish something. ‘Cause we all know “your results will vary” even if you follow the tutorial to a “T”. One more set of how-to’s is always beneficial … especially for those of us who hate to fail : ).

And if you haven’t been to the NTBMWS yet, be forewarned … it’s crazy addictive! But a great way to organize all those projects and recipes you find in the cyber world. And don’t forget to add all the awesome ideas you find here at SC … I’ll be on pins and needles waiting to see all the new file folders titled “All the Awesome Things I’ve Seen on the Party Time Blog”. LOL.

Happy inspiration dear reader! 

~ Elizabeth (ekb)

I recently completed a small Christmas Ornament (well if you think a week of work is small, ha ha) workshop where I showcased instructions and inspiration for 5 holiday ornaments – from felt and sewing to die-cutting, stamping and making shadowboxes – very mixed media. It was so fun that I wanted to share one of the patterns I created for the workshop that I didn’t end up using. 

I am a no fears mixed media artist. Really, you can see by all the projects I make – and this is another one that will convince you to start mixing sewing with fabric and foraging in the forest and then a stamping. Really. Stick with me here. It will be worth it, I promise.

The first thing I want you to do is go out for a walk, in the park, the forest or your garden. Anywhere you can find small trees with tiny branches. Oh, and bring some scissors or garden clips. Enjoy your walk, take some deep breaths of the cool fall air, and when you are relaxed and refreshed clip some branches off the branches of some small trees. The ones I used for this project are about the size of shish kabob skewers. You will need two for each snowman you want to make. And, see if you can find branches that have hands or are gesturing in some way, it will give your ornament some character! The branches should be at least 4 or 5 inches long, it’s easier to trim any excess than go for another walk.

The other supplies you will need for this project are:

Felt – I like to work with wool – but use acrylic if that’s all you have – in cream and red, black embroidery floss, Stamping Ink, sentiment or holiday word stamp, cream cardstock, paper trimmer, scissors, pins and needle, sewing machine, something to stuff your snowman with – can be polyfill or something smelly like lavender, 10” of decorative ribbon.

Start by sending me a private message with your email address and I will email you the pattern, or create your own pattern. Pin the pattern to the cream felt and use a pair of fabric sheers to cut it out. You need to cut two snowmen from the felt.

Cut a long strip of the colored felt approximately ¾” wide and 10” or so long to create the scarf from.

Cut into the two ends to create a fringe on both ends of the scarf. Tie it around the pattern to make sure it is long enough. 

Use the black embroidery floss to stitch a face on Mr. Snowman.

And don’t cut the thread before you add some buttons.

Cut a 10” piece of ribbon and fold it in half. Use some type of adhesive to adhere it to the inside of the head, I taped it to the backside of my snowman.

Place the wrong sides together and prepare to stitch the front and back together. I use a pin to keep the two pieces from moving around while I stitch.

Use a sewing machine (or hand-stitch with white thread) to sew the felt together. Leave an opening on the bottom to stuff the poly-fil in. When you are stitching and come to the spot on each side where the twig arms are, lengthen your stitch so it is as wide as possible (a 4 on the dial) and create one long stitch. (This is where we will stick the twig arms in.)

Insert the twigs in the side of the snowman and stuff with poly-fil or lavender.  When your snowman is fat enough, stitch the hole on the bottom closed and secure the thread ends.

Wrap the scarf around his neck and add a dot of glue to secure it in place.

Stamp the sentiment or holiday saying on cream cardstock. You may want to use a solvent ink for this step.

Use a paper trimmer to cut the cardstock into a long, narrow strip. Create a tag end on the top and distress the ends. Secure the tag around the snowman’s neck with embroidery floss or twine and he’s complete.

You can use this as an ornament, package topper, part of a banner or even a place setting for your holiday party. Make him larger or smaller depending on what your needs are – he’s so cute and versatile that you could leave him up all winter!   

These pumpkins you might say dear reader are “kicking it old school”.  They’ve been making an appearance around the blog sphere for the last couple of years ... but to me ... they’re brand new.  I discovered the velvet pumpkin craze and all its myriad of variations just last month.  Yep, I’m a Johnny-Come-Lately. Singing it loud! Singing it proud!

I’m one of those late-to-the-market people we learned about in business school ... and it’s not because I have time management issues ... which I do, but I like to call that one of my endearing qualities : ). I’m just not a risk taker ... I like tried and true methods and I like to take my time to study something out before I do it.

The studying? Can’t say it’s because I’m one of those intelligent types ... ok mom ... you can stop agreeing so whole heartedly ... although, I don’t know why she thought my solution to the over growth of my size 6X Health-tex dresses wasn’t genius. I mean seriously, what’s not brilliant about cutting a dress apart at its elastic waistband so that the hemline can be pulled lowered? Seemed like absolute Mensa material when I was sitting under the kitchen table with a pair of off-limits fabric-only pinking shears in my hands.

I think my aversion to being a “first innovator” (another one of those marketing terms my mother’s tuition contribution paid for) is that I just don’t want to try or do something that might not work.

Which pretty much boils down to this: I am afraid of failure!

Yep. There it is. And admittance is the first step to recovery, right?

Well, that along with a little therapy and a whole lot of marshmallows : ).

Anywho, I have no need for the glory of being first ... just let my adventures be a success.

So back to the pumpkins ... since they’ve been done and re-done and re-done again, I felt pretty comfortable in trying them out.  Thought they’d make a great centerpiece for a Thanksgiving tabletop ... quick and easy enough to complete while the turkey is self basting.

Now for purposes of the Spotted Canary legal department, I did change my pumpkins a bit from those I ran across in blog world ... I have a fear of failure, they have a fear of being sued.  That typed, I cannot guarantee that these haven’t been done before somewhere by someone ... I just don’t remember seeing them.

But then again, there are days when I can’t remember whether or not I shampooed my hair as I am squeezing conditioner into my palm. So all bets are off.

I first switched up the materials.  No velvet for me. Bought me some of that bargain burlap everyone’s in love with these days ... which, by luck and coincidence, lead me to a second change ... lining.

The open weave of the burlap would allow all the pumpkin’s guts to be exposed. And who wants to be cited for indecent exposure?  So my variations on a pumpkin theme got lined with muslin.

These may not be enough changes to grant me my own copyright, but hopefully enough to keep the SC lawyers at bay.  Interpol? Maybe not so much. Someone get the bail money ready.

Wanna see how I did it?

Thought you’d never ask dear reader : ).


Step One: Gather Together

  

• Burlap
• Muslin
• Embroidery floss to match burlap colors
• Large needles
• Fabric scissors
  
  
  
  
• Batting
• Beans or rice
  
  
  
  
• Sticks in various sizes
• Raffia (if desired)
• Hot glue gun & glue sticks
• Posterboard, pencil and non-fabric scissors

Step Two: Circle the Wagons





Use whatever you have lying around the house to trace circle templates onto posterboard.  Basic formula for circle template size?

Desired Pumpkin Size in Inches (DPSI)  x 3 =  Circle Template Size (CTS)


So ... for a 6 inch pumpkin, the circle template needs to be 18 inches in diameter.  For a 4 inch pumpkin, the circle template should be 12 inches in diameter.

Got it?  It’s not higher math ... but no asking how those numbers came about ... I think there’s something called Pi involved ... mmmm ... pie ...



Step Three: Trace It




Use a pencil. Trust me on this. A permanent marker leaves too heavy of a line so do me a favor and ignore it in the picture a few above : ).



Step Four: Cut It Out





Cut the circles out. Use the  pencil line on the burlap circle as a direct guide but trim the muslin circle just slightly smaller than the pencil line.


Step Five: Lay Down 




Layer circles on work surface with the burlap one on the bottom. Move the muslin circle around so that there is an equal border of burlap showing.



Step Six: Sew It Up




Make a stitch or two in the center of the layers to keep them from shifting while you work.



Step Seven: Run for It




Sew a loose running stitch around the outer edge of the circle.  I’d suggest using no less than three strands of embroidery floss to make sure there is no breakage when you gather. Stitch size doesn’t matter, but keep them between a ¼ and a ½ inch from the edge.

Once you’ve gotten all the way around, continue sewing for a few more stitches ... this step will make sure the gathers meet.



Step Eight: Pull Some Strings




Pull both ends of the embroidery floss to gather the pumpkin, easing the pleats as you go. The larger pumpkins will not close all the way up (there’s too much fabric) so that will make filling easy.  For the smaller pumpkins, gather until there is an opening just big enough to get stuff stuffed inside.



Step Nine: Stuff It




Fill with beans and top off with batting.  This is a touchy, feely kind of thing.  The beans are there to give the pumpkin weight for sitting.  The batting, to the give the pumpkin volume ... so add what you think is best.  

I liked my pumpkins a little less stuffed so that there were big folds in the burlap to give them a more realistic look.



Step Ten: Pull Tight




Pull the gathers tight ... just be careful NOT to pull so hard you break the strings ... annoying as all get out!



Step Eleven: Stick the Landing




Insert your chosen stick and maneuver it around until it has that “just picked from the patch” kind of look.  Once the stick is stuck in its place, pull the strings as tight as you can get them.  Don’t cut the strings.



Step Twelve: Stitch Around




Thread the needle with one of gathering strings. Stitch through the gathers going around the stem. Remove the needle and leave the string long. Thread the needle with the other gather string and stitch around the stem going in the opposite direction.

Remove the needle and pull both strings tight once again. Tie them off ... this is when you may want to call someone in from the other room to give you the, I mean a, finger. It’s easier to keep the knot tight when you have some help. NOW you can cut the strings.

At this point, you could add some hot glue to the stem.  Insert the nose of the glue gun into the pumpkin between the gathers and the stem, pull the trigger and let the glue work its magic.



Step Thirteen: Wrap It Up




Add some raffia and leaves to the stem if you so desire.  BTW, raffia works miracles at covering any glue mistakes ... just sayin’.



Step Fourteen: Enjoy the Fruits of Your Labor




Make a few or a whole patch full. Group them on a large charger like I did, or line them up down the center of the dining table tucking some additional leaves and nuts in between. Easy peasy centerpiece!



So as I was working on these variations on a pumpkin theme, my brain got to thinking about other materials to try ... what about newspaper spritzed with spray ink? Or wool plaid suiting fabric? Maybe some linen that’s been stamped with a pretty flourish pattern? Hmmm ... lots to try while the bird is roasting.

Hopefully dear reader you’ve “fallen” for these pumpkins like I did ... or maybe re-fallen if they’re a repeat performance for ya. Either way, give them a try in some or all their variations.

I’m sure it’ll be a successful adventure! Because failure is futile (said in my best Star Trek Borg voice)! LOL.

Happy Thanksgiving dear reader! I hope you and yours have a wonderful day filled with a bounty of yummy goodness and hearts over-flowing with gratitude. I know my heart is filled with thanksgiving for you!  Thanks again for your patronage!


Happy pumpkin picking!

~ Elizabeth (ekb)

  

  

Have you seen these fun wood corner stamp sets at your local stamping or craft store and passed them by, or have them because you love the images but haven’t used them yet – or haven’t used them in a while? I love them and have made some really beautiful cards with the sets that I have – but haven’t used them much lately. Today I decided to mix it up a little and try something new.

Here are the two sets that I have – really pretty images and two very versatile sets.

Each set has 6 stamps – 4 corners and 2 sentiments.  You can mix the stamps and get a fun variety of images, like this. 

The stamps are really easy to stamp with, the images are nice and crisp – and even though they are wood stamps it’s a snap to line-up the images.   You can see here how I created a fun circle repeating the same image.

When you combine that with the sentiment stamped and then punched using the photo labels punch, you can almost hear the angels singing. To find a punch that stamps out a sentiment is my dream come true. Who would have known it would be so hard to find? I usually create custom sentiments on my computer and print them on cardstock so I can use my punches with sentiments on card projects. 

I decided to see what would happen when I mixed two sets together – I didn’t know if it would look good but I definitely wanted to get some more versatility with these two sets.

What a pleasant surprise. I love the way this turned out, now I just need to make it into a card.

Here are the elements I used for my card, which is 5” x 7”. I have a piece of patterned paper  cut to slightly smaller than my card base, a piece of cardstock that is about ½” smaller than my patterned paper. To  get a pattern on the white cardstock, I placed a piece of die-cut cardstock over it and spritzed it with pink glimmery spray – the result – yummy patterned cardstock that matches the colors in my design perfectly. I also have two small doilies from Wilton, a piece of pink cardstock die-cut in a scalloped circle, my stamped image that is also die-cut to fit on the scalloped circle, two Real Estate signs punched from pink cardstock, the sentiment stamped and punched using the photo labels punch and a piece of white cardstock embossed and inked to accentuate the pattern. Most of the edges of the papers have been distressed with brown distressing ink.

To assemble the card, I layered the glimmery cardstock on top of the patterned paper and secured with adhesive in the center.  (I didn't worry about the black ink in the center -- I knew I was going to cover it.

Then I adhered the two doilies and used the embossed cardstock strip to hide the spot where the doilies meet.

And I stitched these elements together using white thread, don't forget to trim any cardstock that hangs over the edge of the card with your craft scissors.

Next comes the pink 4” scalloped circle, the two real estate signs and a piece of twine wrapped around and tied in a knot.  The card panel is ready to adhere to the white cardbase. I stitch around the edge of the patterned paper to secure it to the cardbase.

I stitched around the stamped image before I added it to the card, and then used 3D dots to add it to the center of the pink scalloped circle. (Can you tell I’ve been working on more Christmas things, ha ha. I didn’t even notice that Joy to the World mini-stamp until after I started editing the images.)

It’s easy to add a little color to stamped imaged with watercolor crayons, just scribble the color in the general area where you want the color and use a wet paint brush to remove the scribble marks and smooth the color out. When you have colored in the background and flowers; add some optional glitter in the center of each flower and on the wings of the butterfly. 

I also added a few finishing touches – kind of like gilding the lily – a bow, a button and the sentiment that I turned into a tag and my card is complete. 

I have so many supplies that I loved at one time and just had to have when I bought them -- but don’t use anymore – new things have come in and replaced them. I decided it’s time to starting using my old tools and supplies in new ways! I want to try combining unsuspecting tools and sets together; I think mixing it up will revive my old loves and infuse a fresh look with old supplies into my scrapbook pages, art and mixed media projects.