Mixed Media...

Today I have another video to share with you that is in a mixed media style.  To be honest, I'm not sure about this whole mixed media thing.  I used to hate mixed media; I thought it was a bit old and clunky and I didn't like a lot of the darker colors that I often saw and associated with the mixed media style.  But honestly now I have explored more blogs, videos and photos.  I have seen how you can use brighter colors and how you can make a whole 'canvas' or 'picture' around a quote or an idea and I absolutely love that idea!  I'm all about the words and 'feel' of a project.  Now I can honestly say that I love the concept, the ideas and all the projects that I've seen.

But I'm not much of an artist, and I feel like some of my ideas won't come to life because of my poor drawing skills.  So I'm trying to come to terms with that.  I also feel like there is some expense involved, because I want to try different things than I'm doing now.  I will say that I have love/hate relationship with using some of the 'mixed media' products.  You get messy with paints and gelatos and modeling paste, but then it takes a long time to clean up and let everything dry and I'm definitely not a patient person.  But I'm not going to give up.  Mixed media projects definitely take a little bit longer, but I'm going to keep at it, just maybe not very frequently.

So without further ado, here is my video for today.  I used a mixture of watercolor and chalks and did not end up liking the end result at all!  I love the watercolor half of the project and wish I would have just left it alone!  Oh well, lesson learned--you don't have to use everything at once.  I hope you enjoy the video and thanks so much for watching!

Cut File Giveaway

Here's a video for you guys that shows me unboxing my new Silhouette Portrait!  I am so thrilled with it already and can't wait to use it more!  I'm also doing a giveaway, so be sure to enter your name into the Rafflecopter widget below so you can be entered into the contest!  I will randomly select a winner and notify them next Friday!  The giveaway will be a mix of die cuts that I've cut out on my Portrait, some Project Life style cards, some titles, some labels, etc.  Just a random mix of things, but I will include a lot, so be sure to sign up!


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Always Sleeping Layout Process Video

Whew!  I have been making tons of videos lately, finally feeling back in the groove and totally inspired!  I'm planning to do a post soon that talks about where I get inspiration and how I try to get going when I'm feeling uninspired.  But for today, I have a layout video for you.  I narrated this one and I hope you enjoy.  Let me know what you liked or didn't like in the comment section!  Thanks for watching!

"You're Invited" Card Process Video

Sorry it's been awhile since my post schedule is somewhat 'normal.'  I've got a ton of videos in the works and I'm working on narrating more of them, but a nasty cold/flu virus has been going around and I definitely caught the cold part of it!  I've still been filming, but unable to narrate.  On the plus side, I've been using some of my down time to be learning more about video editing, make layouts, get inspired and think up some projects that I want to do in the future.  Thanks so much for watching this video and I hope there will be many more next week!

Also, the giveaway winner has been randomly selected!  Thanks to those who entered and congratulations, Pam Dukeshire!  I have sent you an e-mail and can't wait to hear from you!

Easter Rabbit Wreath Tutorial

I found an awesome rabbit wreath on Pinterest but there was no way that I could afford the $70+ shipping price tag, so I decided to see if I could do it on my own, for less.  

So I went to Hobby Lobby and picked up most of the supplies I needed.  The only things not pictured are hot glue and floral wire, which I already had at home from previous projects.  But I know the floral wire is about $2-3 at Wal-Mart.  I picked up four bunches of flowers, but only used two.

I did have a minor panic attack when I couldn't find my wreaths, but they were ALL the way at the back of the floral area.  And they were much cheaper than I thought they would be, even though the colors didn't match perfectly.  There was no sale on them the week that I went, but I was able to use a coupon on one.  But even full price they were only $2.99 and $4.99--not too shabby.

The whole project ended up clocking in just over twenty dollars and I thought this was pretty good because I had expected to pay about fifty total.  I'm not sure exactly what everything cost because I did purchase some extra materials, but ended up returning those.  And, as is always the case with Hobby Lobby, there were some sales on various items.  So the project could definitely run you a little more or a little less, depending on how the sales/coupons run.

So, I basically started by tying the two wreaths together.  I wish I had a picture of this, but it was really easy.  I just used some regular floral wire and put it through the small wreath, making sure it went in between the various branches.  Then when it came out on the other side, I put it through some of the branches on the larger wreath.  I did this twice, just to make sure it was secure and then I twisted it in the back and cut off the wire.  Even with just the head and body attached, it was already looking better!

Next up came the flowers!  On most fake flowers, the flower can be removed from the long stems.  As you can see in this photo, the 'petals' are attached to a little piece of green plastic.  This pulls right off of the longer stems of the flowers.  So I just pulled one set of yellow flowers off and one set of pink flowers and decided to see if that was enough before I pulled them off the other two bunches.  For me, one bunch of each color was enough for my whole rabbit wreath.  But if you want more, you could definitely go for that.  One thing that I really like about using the fake flowers is that there are so many styles and colors, so you can definitely find the colors that you want for your project.  I also like that there are many affordable options.  I think these were $1.99 and the pink ones were $2.99 per bunch.

After you pull all the flowers off, it's time to get your hot glue gun heating up.  This part is really easy and not even very time consuming.  Just put a hot glue in between a couple of the branches on the wreath, so the flower can kind of nestle into the glue between the branches...

And then just place the flower where the glue is, holding it in place for a few seconds until the glue holds.  The flowers are so lightweight that the hot glue holds very well.

Just keep gluing flowers in place until you're happy with the arrangement. I alternated colors as I was going so that I never got too many of one color in one place.

Another step that I didn't get a picture of was making and adhering the ears.  It was super simple though.  I just cut a piece of the grapevine wire and make it into an oval/ear shape.  Then I stuck it between the branches of the wreath and hot glued it in place very well.  This was the only step that I was worried about the hot glue not holding.  But the wire is pretty sturdy on its own, and if you push it deep into the wreath, it almost wants to hold in place on its own.  But I wanted to make sure it was secure, so I hot glued it.  And you will definitely have a lot of leftover grapevine wreath but I'm already thinking of a way to use it up!

After that, I just tied a piece of ribbon into a bow around the bunny neck!  Originally I had purchased some purple ribbon, but as I was making the wreath, I noticed a piece of pink ribbon that had come in one of my Studio Calico kits.  Since it matched the color of one of my flowers, I opted to use that and return the purple ribbon to save some money.

Then I took the finished rabbit wreath and hung it up on my Grandma's door.  I was able to just hang it on a nail so I didn't need a hanger of any kind.  All in all, it was a pretty simple, cost-effective project coming in around $20 and one hour's worth of work.  I think it's one of my favorite holiday decorations yet!  Thanks so much for reading and don't forget to sign up for the book giveaway.  I'll also be having a die cut giveaway next week, so stay tuned for that!  Have a great day and a Happy Easter!

Studio Calico Kraft Bag Video

Hey everyone!  I have a super quick video today, sharing how I made my own version of this bag from Studio Calico.

Thanks so much for watching and don't forget to sign up for my giveaway that was posted on April 12th--I'm giving away a copy of the June Noble Paiges' Book Club choice "The Rosie Project."  So make sure to sign up for that and I'm also doing a giveaway when I reach 300 subscribers, to be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and share the videos so you will have a shot at half of the Just Add Color Project Life kit!

Noble Paiges' Next Book

I hope everyone enjoyed the book club discussion, even if the book itself wasn't everyone's cup of tea.  I think next month's selection is going to be much better and I can't wait to read it and hear what everyone has to say about...

We will be discussing "The Rosie Project" on Saturday, June 7th.  I am very excited to have everyone read "The Rosie Project" and I'm doing a giveaway!  I'm trying out a giveaway service and hopefully it will work well.  Just leave a comment in the comment section telling me what book you'd like to have the book club read and discuss in the future.  Then make sure you enter through the Rafflecopter widget below.  The giveaway will close April 16th and I will announce a winner on the 17th!  Thanks so much for participating in the first Noble Paiges' book club discussion!

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