Sea Glass

Back home today, swapping the cool sea mists and ocean waves for parched dirt, blue skies and the hot Texas sun.  But home is where we are and it makes being away so much more special.

We collected a bunch of sea glass for Carole's jewelry pieces and I left with a bag full of shells.  I LOVE shells and have tins full of them from everywhere I've been where there was a beach....  I've used them to decorate mirrors, frames, boxes and more.  However, for those of you who aren't sure what sea glass is, here's a photo of Carole's collection.  Notice she collects small pottery pieces too.

And this is a piece of jewelry she made.

It takes dedication (and good eyesight) to find all the right pieces and they're not that easy to spot.  Look at this photo below and see if you can spot the piece of sea glass:

Can you see it?

 Here it is - right inside the circle!

As you can imagine, I came home with a severe case of "beachcombers' back"...........LOL, but it's back (no pun intended) to work this week.

Lots going on next week that I have to get ready for.  Designer Crafts Connection members will be posting First Monday projects on October 3rd featuring Westcott brand product and a fantastic GIVEAWAY.  I posted a photo about a week ago, so be sure to check it out.

I'm also participating in the Sizzix Fresh Vintage blog hop to support fellow designer, Eileen Hull and I'll be posting my project next Tuesday!  As you can imagine, when I said I had to get to work - I meant it!  Plus there's lots to catch up with from last week.  Y'all come back now....................

Yours truly,
Julie :)

Sea Mists and Sea Glass

There's nothing more serene than watching the mists roll in off the ocean, covering the tops of the trees like a lightweight blanket.  There's the sound of a lonely bell chiming in the distance with the swell of the waves and the delicate swooshing noise as the touch the sand.  However nothing deters the intrepid Sea Glass hunters as they continue the hunt......  (we are Brits after all and certainly not strangers to this kind of weather).

  

  

Now we're just waiting for a ghost ship to appear out of the swirling mists and an army of zombies to jump out from behind the rocks.....    y'all come back now...........

Yours truly,

Julie :) 

Oh What a Beautiful Morning!

This is what I was looking at while drinking my morning cup of tea!  Now I'm off sea glass hunting with my sister.

Y'all come back now.........

Yours truly,
Julie :)

I'm Going On Holiday!

I'm going on holiday tomorrow and won't be back till Sunday.  I'll try to post pictures while I'm gone, but you'll have to excuse me if I don't - I think I'm going to give my eyes a rest and stay away from the computer for a while.  They deserve a holiday too..........  in the meantime here are some ideas to get you thinking about the December holidays! 

 

 

I love all kinds of holidays!  So many creative opportunities........  which reminds me..... it's Craft Day at HSN next Monday, September 26th.  You really should tune in.  They always have great craft kits and really good pricing.  Y'all come back now..........

Yours Truly,

Julie :)

When is A Frame Not a Frame?

A frame is pretty much always a frame, but it doesn't always have to have a photo.  This frame was découpaged with scraps of leftover paper then embellished with ribbon.  Even the center part was covered with ribbon, but, yes you could use paper for the center too.  I also glued gros grain ribbon around the outside edge to finish then glued a letter to the center!  Not bad for an EZPZ project!  And the frame was only a $1 - less if I'd had my coupon.......

I used Elmer's Fabric and Paper glue and applied it to the wood surface with a sponge brush.  I could have used it for the ribbon too, but, except for the ribbon around the outside edge, I used Elmer's adhesive dots to hold the short pieces in place and Tacky glue for the letter.   Enjoy!  Y'all come back now.........

Yours truly,
Julie :)

Giveaway Winner!

Margie from Chicagoland won this month's giveaway - a set of DVDs of the new TV show, Scrapbook Soup.  Now let's see what's coming up next month:

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and Westcott is challenging members of the Designer Crafts Connection to come up with something spectacular for their First Monday projects using Westcott tools and........... well, you'll just have to wait to see what other products we have to work with.  Details on how you can enter to win will be posted on First Monday, October 3rd, so y'all come back now......

Yours truly,
Julie :)

Giveaways

I'm loving all your comments about Scrapbook Soup and I know everyone is hoping to win the DVD set of this first series, BUT don't forget the requirements to enter.  You have to list the names of the Designer Craft Connection blogs where you see this logo

You can visit all the blogs in our group by "hopping forward" from one to the other, wherever you see this logo in the sidebar of each blog.  If you get "stuck" at some point come back to my blog, then "hop backwards".  In a perfect world you would start here and end up back here, but there are occasional technical difficulties

Good luck!  The winner will be announced on September 15th together with some exciting news about our next giveaway, so y'all come back now...............

Yours truly,
Julie :)

September Giveaway and First Monday Projects!

Members of the Designer Crafts Connection Blog group post projects on the First Monday of each month and to celebrate we also have a giveaway!  The theme for the month of September is parties, baby showers, wedding showers, etc., basically anything to do with decorating for a celebration.

We recently celebrated my granddaughter's 3rd birthday.  The party theme was a monumental decision.  Were we going to decorate with Tinkerbell and Fairies, or Princesses.  She eventually decided she would be a princess and hold court from a big bounce castle in the back yard complete with water slide.... perfect for the hot weather we've had all summer.  For this party I made a garland, or rather pieces for a garland.  We ended up hanging them individually from the light fixture over her party table.

Garlands are normally hung across a window, but since we'd been to Disney World earlier this year, I had photos of Jovie with her favourite princesses and decided to put the photos on the back.  I used a Spellbinders Nestability® die to cut the decorative rectangles from white glitter cardstock then using pink, blue and yellow glitter cardstock, I glued a colored rectangle to the center of each of the decorative ones.  I covered white chipboard letters with glitter, then glued one to the center of each rectangle.

I printed photos of Jovie with each of the princesses, plus two additional photos, cut them to size and glued one at the back of each piece.

I could easily have made a garland by attaching the pieces together with a ribbon at each corner.  Bakers twine is ideal, but there are lots of things to use depending on the "look" of your banner.  Embroidery floss works well for something delicate and there's an unlimited number of colors to choose from, plus check out decorative yarns, silk ribbons and more - all with "sparkle".

 

Banners and garlands are a great addition to any party decoration, whatever the celebration.  Now let's continue our celebration with a GIVEAWAY!

SEPTEMBER GIVEAWAY!

We have something special this month - a set of Scrapbook Soup, Series 100 DVDs!  Scrapbook Soup is now airing on your local PBS TV channel.  Check your local listings and if it isn't listed, call the station and request it!  Program managers always like to hear what their viewers want to watch. 

To enter to win, list the names of the Designer Crafts Connection blogs where you see the Scrapbook Soup logo here in my comments section.  To see all the blogs, click on the "hop forward" button wherever you see the blue DCC logo in the sidebar.  Keep on hopping and you will end up back here where you can add your comment. The winner will be announced on September 15th, so y'all come back now.........

Yours truly,
Julie :)