Sensory Play Quilt

I love to sew, but I don't find time to do it often enough. A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to receive some fabulous trims from Decorative Trimmings and I selected some with making a quilt for the Princess in mind. I knew I wanted to add  lots of  trim to the quilt top so it would have lots of texture for her to play with.




Here is the Princess in action on her quilt- I never did get a really good shot of her on it, she moves so fast there days!

I used a selection of ric rak and lace from Decorative trimmings.

My fabric is a mix of stuff from my stash and I used Poly-fil Cotton Classic Batting from Fairfield World - this is one of my favorites!

I started by cutting my fabrics in to strips of varying widths and lying them out in the pattern I liked. Really, it was truly random.


Once I sewed all the strips together, I added the trim along the seams. Next up I added the Poly-fil and backing, quilted the pieces together, and trimmed the edges even.


To add the large ric rak into the front binding, I trimmed it down and tucked it into the binding as I sewed. I over lapped the ends to seal.

Here's another look at the Princess playing on her quilt. She loves the ribbons sewn on the top- she is spending lots of time pulling on them and chewing on them!

Thanks for stopping by today!



Creating With Joy Letters

 I am so happy to say that I am Creating with



Joy S.A. Embroidered Letters & Appliques for Wearables & Home Decor that is!

Joy S.A. is sponsoring a blog hop with Designer Crafts Connections so be sure to check out all the amazing projects from the other designers. Use the arrows beneath the logo in my sidebar to the right to navigate the web ring.  

I was so happy to be given this opportunity and equally happy to be working with such a wonderfully talented group of ladies. Here is my first project.

Back at CHA (Craft Hobby Association) Super Show in January I was so lucky to get in on a wonderful traveling Make N Take on opening day sponsored by American Crafts, Heidi Swapp, Bazzill Basics Paper, and a few other marvelous companies. I was given this canvas album, complete with page inserts, and lots of embellies to decorate it. It has been sitting on my shelf mocking me since then because I have not been able to decide what to do with it.

As soon as I received my letters from Joy this album came to mind. Perfect for the Princess, yes? The album came with the silver star on the front. Who doesn't need more silver sequins in their lives? It is a little hard to see but I gave the background on the left side a spray of Heidi Swapp Color Shine in Gold for a little contrast on the canvas.


To dye my letters, which came a bright white, I used ColorBox Spritzers Ink diluted with a little water. I mixed the ink/water on my craft mat and pushed the letters around in the solution for a bit, then dried with my heat gun. 
The super cute little stars are also from Joy and dyed using the same technique. I added ribbon from Decorative Trimmings and Maya Road, a few flowers, and buttons from Buttons Galore and More.

Don't forget to hop through the Designer Crafts Connections Web Ring and be sure to check out the Joy S.A. web page here to see all of their amazing products.


Magical Memories Mini Album

Hi everyone! I have a new class coming up over at The Crafty Scrapper that I wanted to share with you. I am pretty excited about this class- it is going to be so much fun!

MAgical Memories Album Cover

Do you have some magical memories to record? This album is the perfect solution! We will start with the Say Cheese papers and a Maya Road chipboard album as the base, but will add additional pages and lots of extra media to create an amazing one of a kind book. Using the Cinch binding tool allows us to create an album that opens on BOTH sides and measures an impressive 20" wide when fully open!

If you have been wanting to learn to use the Cinch binding tool, or would like some more practice with it, in this class you will learn how to make your albums really interactive and personal.
I recommend Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive for covering the chipboard base of the album. If you have never used it I will be showing the method I use. Also bring a Tiny Attacher, Bone folder, black journal pen, white Signo pen, LOTs of foam tape/pop dots, and the basic class kit found on our home page.

Anita Magical Memories Open

Anita MAgical Memories top

To reserve your spot in the class, be sure to call the store 972-923-3121. 
Remember, if you are not in the area, you can purchase a kit just by calling the store :) Kits will be available next month (we are waiting on the paper to ship).




Fun with Frames

Hi everyone. Today I have a couple of fun projects to share with you using Acrylic Craft Frames from Deflecto Craft Solutions. You will now be able to order these products from Hot Off The Press!

I received some beautiful papers from HOTP to use and I had such a hard time choosing from them that I used a little bit from all three packages; Artful Watercolor, Sweet Life, and On Butterfly Wings.

For my first frame I used the 5x7 Beveled Edge Frame and decorated inside and on top of the frame. This frame can be presented either portrait or landscape to fit your needs.

I loved the flowers from the Artful Watercolor pack, so I fussy cut several, shaped and layered them, added some Stickles and adhered to the front of my frame. I also punched some tiny butterflies using a very old punch I have, coated them with Glossy Accents and added to the flowers when dry.

To add a little interest to the upper corner I pulled out a little bling from Melissa Frances and some coordinating ribbon.

For the second frame I wanted something Back To School themed and I used
I mixed several of the papers from the Sweet Life pack, adding some faux stitching with a black pen.

The Hall Pass in the Flexible Pouch can be removed from the frame when needed - cool, huh? I added a little note to let students know the pass was checked out. The amazingly cute school themed ribbon is from Doodlebug- and I have been hoarding saving it for years because I knew that someday I would need it for something!


Hot Off The Press has just released their new catalog so be sure to check it out.  Thanks so much for stopping by today. I hope you are having drier weather where you are than we are here- I think we are on day 87 of rain :o(



Spring Spruce up - Moss Balls

Hi everyone, hope you are having a fabulous week. As winter moves away and spring is in full bloom, I always feel the need to bring greenery and flowers into the house. I just love spring- everything comes alive and is beautiful!

http://www.smoothfoam.com/blog/
Today I have a fun project using Smoothfoam Balls to share with you. This project took me all of 20 minutes and gave a fun perk to my hearth.


I normally keep some ivory candles on these, but I thought they needed a little more color for spring.

I used 3 3/8" Diameter Smoothfoam Balls, some cheap moss from the Dollar store, Aleene's Turbo Tacky Glue and some ribbon.

Apply the glue to the Smoothfoam Ball (it is THICK) and then press bits of moss into the glue until you have the whole ball covered. Don't worry about trying to make an even, smooth layer. We are going to give it a haircut in a bit.

The ball in the center has been trimmed to make it pretty. Let them dry for a few minutes, then take a sharp pair of scissors and just trim away any bits that are sticking out. Keep moving the ball around until the moss is pretty even- checking for bare spots as you go. If you missed a spot, now is the time to add a little more glue and moss.

I added a simple bow on top of each, securing with a pearl head pin. Easy peasy.

Be sure to check out the Smoothfoam Blog for lots of great projects.




Our Love Story Album

It's first Monday and it is time for another hop through the web ring of Designer Crafts Connection. To hop through the ring, use the Hop Back and Forward arrows on the button in my sidebar to the right.
This month's theme is "BLING" - and we all know I love bling! I started this little mini album a while back, but just hadn't finished it off.

 I use chipboard for the covers and used my WRMK Corner Chomper to round the outer edges. My paper is from Authentique. I used stencils and Gelatos from Design Memory Craft to color the front cover. I used my WRMK Cinch to bind it all.

I added a 3x3 mini canvas to the front over, and I used Gelatos again to color it. I added some Maya Road chipboard pieces, which I inked and covered with more Authentique paper, then coated with Sparkle Mod Podge- which is just about my favorite thing on earth.  The pearl is from Melissa Francis.


To texture the cover, I used a combination of stencils, Gelatos from Design Memory Craft, molding paste, and chunky glitter,  then brushed the whole thing down with Sparkle Mod Podge. I also added a stick pin that I made- you can check out my tutorial here

Be sure to check out the other projects in the hop- there are some uber talented artists in the group and check out The Designer Crafts Connection Blog too.