Busy, Busy

Having this...

as a mother makes it mandatory that I love Halloween. Lucky for both of us I do!
Love the pumpkins...love the scary decorations....love the chocolate! And really love any excuse to craft..and what better excuse than a holiday!!

This week I have been working on this cutie...




Now, the before mentioned mother, AKA The Clever Rose is not a scrapbooker, she has a drawer that holds her pictures. The pictures are all mingled together, my wedding mixed with Levi's 3rd birthday, mixed with the trip to Disneyland and her high school dance pictures...well you get the idea. Amazingly enough she manages to find what ever picture she is looking for when she wants, so she must have some secret clever system in place! But when even she is coveting this cute altered tin, I know I have done good!





This is the finishing touch on a Halloween whimsy jar swap that I am in on Two Peas. (Yes, another! I really am a swapping junky!) But I may just have to make a few more one for me and one for the Halloween Freak...er I mean, mom!

Here is a little preview on a future post....


And this Saturday is my turn to host the Sisterhood of the Traveling Paints or Craft Day

I have big plans for these on Saturday....

Digital Scrapbooking

I've gotten a few more digital pages done.








I am really liking how these look and the layering I can add to them. I use a free site www.scrapblog.com. It has some limitations, but hey its free, so who's complaining!

Gavin and Taya watched me design a few and wanted to make there own. Here are their designs




I am so proud, getting all creative and taking after their mama!

Another one off the "to do list"....

A while back I was shopping around Roberts (my favorite local craft store) and they had the cutest blank chipboard books. But this was during my unemployed moment and even the $5 they cost was to much. Now I know I could have gone to my mommy (The Clever Rose)and she would have bought one for me, but it didn't feel right, so I put it back. Later that week I was purging stuff in DD room (yes, while she was out playing at a friends house, so she didn't freak out and try and horde all the stuff I had in the pile) when I came across this
and added it to the DI pile (local thrift store), which is were I actually got it in the first place, you can still see the price on the front of it. Later that night, I am lying in bed when inspiration strikes (this is were it usually happens, when I am trying to sleep)! That book is exactly what I was coveting from the craft store!. The next morning I rescue it from the DI pile. I set to work making it into this

Cory's book that I still "owe" him from Christmas. Every year I make the kids and him a mini album of highlights from the past year. For Cory's I usually find a song that I feel is significant or expresses my feelings. This album is Angel of Mine by Evanescence. It took me about a week of little bit here, a little bit there building.

At first I was going to leave the book completely in tack. But then I started adding buttons and brads and bulky embellishments and it wouldn't stay closed. So then I cut it apart, used a crocodile to punch holes in the chipboard pages and then assembled it back on some key rings. I was going to tie ribbon around the rings, but it looked to feminine.

I left the spine in tack on the front/back cover because I felt it looked a little tidier.

I finally finished it yesterday and presented it to him. He loved it. I even caught him showing it to some friends last night!
I guess I better get started on this years, then I might actually have it done on time for Christmas!

I am adding this to the Make your Monday over at Twice Remembered's link party! Check it out.

You will never look at a mint the same again...

Over on The Shabby Nest it is frugal Friday. So in honor of that Altoid Tin is way to cute for the trash can!

This is a cute, quick project that I put together in just a few hours. It began as a regular Altoids tin. I decorated the top with some scrap paper. I used a really strong tacky glue,because I have not always had the best success getting modge podge to adhere to metal and then stay there after it has been handled a few times.

On the inside lid, I used a rub on saying about family.


Then I made a simple accordion album, filled with some of my fav pics and tied it with a ribbon.


Tada! It was done!

A few tips, make sure to cover the bottom of the tin. Cut the paper around the hinges on the side of the tin. Be aware of the little bump on the front of the tiny that is used to keep the lid on, if you cover that then the album will not stay closed.

On another note today was very productive. I got Gunner's apron done and my forbidden skirt done. I will be posting on both soon... so stay tuned!