Image: sxc.hu

Here are a list of some quilting patterns that encompass star designs:

• Beautiful Star
• Feather Edged Star
• French Star
• Lone Star
• Mexican Star
• Pieced Star
• Rolling Star
• Seven Stars
• Star of the West
• Star of Bethlehem

Post from: Blisstree

Space & Stars Designs

Well now my friend Corinne Stubson, who teaches book arts classes and has exhibited her books in art galleries, has decided to make a very special present for everyone in the group who wants to play.  We will each be creating a book page and sending it to Corinne.  She is going to color copy all of the pages, bind them, and send them to each of us.

Piano hinge book, by Corinne Stubson

Some of the folks in the group think that Corinne should keep our originals for herself since she is doing all this work and financing the entire thing as a gift to the group.  I hope we can prevail upon her to do just that.

Some of you may remember Corinne Stubson from an artist profile that she did for me awhile ago.

Post from: Blisstree

Altered Books 10 year anniversary

Why not try quilting as you go?

Quilt as you go is a method of hand quilting that only requires you to work on small sections of quilt at a time.   Instead of working on a full quilt top, you piece together small sections at  a time.  You then quilt the small pieces with a batting and backing, and then go on to the next small piece.

Once you have all your small pieces of the quilt done, you sew it together, camouflaging the seams on the back.  It’s a convenient way to quilt, especially if you like to take your quilting traveling or even just when you’re running errands!

image: Stock.xchg

Post from: Blisstree

Quilt As You Go

Did your life turn out the way you imagined it?

So…if I’m going to ask you to create a scrapbook layout based on that question, how would you have executed it?

These are a couple of scrapbook layouts from an album created by Iris based on that question:

Image credit: Iris Babao-Uy

Post from: Blisstree

Creative Therapy: Life’s Expectations

Image: Die Cuts R Us

Die Cuts R Us, is looking for a few great Designers for the first Design Team! We welcome all U.S. designers to apply. Are you passionate about creating? Do you love the newest and latest products and Papers? Then what are you waiting for?? APPLY!

To Be A DCRU Designer You Must:

1. Email at least three layouts, cards, tags, altered art, or other project) a month. Your creations will be posted on the DCRU blog and in the ideas section along with details about each project, products used and any special techniques such as paper tearing, painting, stamping, inking, distressing, etc. in your description. You are to try and use as many products as you can that are sold by DCRU. This includes Cricut, Spellbinders, Cuttlebug, QuicKutz, Papers, etc.

2. Come up with one great challenge for readers. Once a month, a new challenge will be listed on the DCRU blog.

3. Positive and encouraging participation in our challenges, commenting on entries, and in the recruiting of new bloggers to our site. Our goal is to be an active, friendly site, that inspires!

5. Advertise DieCutsRUs.com on Yahoo or MSN Groups as well as your blog if you have one and anywhere else it is acceptable to do so. This can be a simple, “Have you seen what’s new at DieCutsRUs.com?”, “Come see my challenge”, “Did you see my layout….?”. Be sure to include a full link back to the site so people can find what you are talking about easily. Be sure to add Design Team Member for DieCutsRUs.com in your signature line when possible.

6. Communicate with Owner /Design Team Coordinator about absences due to illness or vacation or the inability to complete a requested project.

7. Finally, a six-month commitment to give DieCutsRUs.com your best and to help make it a wonderful friendly site. You are to be exclusive to DCRU as a webstore design team member. You may still be a designer for kit clubs, challenge sites, manufacturers, etc.

Here is what you will get in return:

1. Bio and Photo on our DT link/site along with an active link to your blog.

2. Design Team Member Button for use on your blog and/or site.

3. Die Cuts Samples from dies and cartridges we carry to use on your projects.

4. A great place to show your work, inspire others, and be a part of a fun team while building your scrap resume’.

5. Random Acts of Kindness from time to time that will include new products to create with. Product is yours to keep with the understanding you use it to create and email the projects for the idea link and store blog.

6. Once a month “free shipping” on an order from our store; and once a month 10% off sub-total coupon (cannot be used together, and cannot be used on orders containing special sale prices).

7. We also would love to take your requests and feedback for hot and up and coming new products you think we should carry in our store!

Submission Process:

Complete the following and email to: diecutsrus@me.com
Please put DT CALL in the subject line.

Name, mailing address, phone number, email address
Your screen name & link to any photo galleries you have containing your work.

Scrapbook Resume (if you have one)

ATTACH TO EMAIL 3 EXAMPLES OF YOUR WORK THAT WOULD FIT INTO THE STYLE OF DIE CUTS R US WITH PRODUCT “RECIPE”. This means using products like Patterned Paper, Cricut,, Cricut Exp, Spellbinders, QuicKutz, or in the style of these type of products. Please visit the store www.diecutsrus.com to get an idea of the products we sell. The idea is to promote products we sell through ideas and projects!

Include the answers to the following questions in your email:

1) Have you ever designed for another website/company? If so, provide a link and your username for each?
2) Are you currently designing for another website/company? If so, provide a link and your username for each?
3) Are you active on any message boards? If so, provide a link and your username for each?
4) How long have you been scrapbooking?
5) Do you have a blog? What is the address?
6) Do you do any altered items or stamping?
7) Who are your favourite manufacturers? (top 5)
Why are you interested in a DT position at DCRU and what can you bring to the team?

9)We are also looking for ONE member of the team to concentrate and promote the Quickutz system and products. If you want to be consider for this position, please let us know. You MUST have the QuicKutz product and dies and be comfortable using them to qualify.

Announcement of team by July 31, 2009

Start Date: August 1, 2009

Details: Open to US only. (Due to shipping)

Post from: Blisstree

Die Cuts R Us - Design Team Search

Image: Eyelets ETc

Here are the details of the contest:

We’re giving away an eyelet assortment pack from Eyelets Etc. right here on this blog.

If you caught my “Tips & Tricks” column in the August issue of Creating Keepsakes, you know that I shared an easy organization solution for eyelets, using bitty boxes and grommets. Well, the colorful eyelets we used in that magazine project are looking for a home, and it could very well be yours.

Here’s how to enter:

Leave me a comment, stating your favorite thing to do with eyelets between now and Sunday, July 19. From the comments received, we’ll randomly select a lucky winner. The winning name will be posted on the “Giveaways” tab (at the top of this blog) on Monday, July 20, so please check back to see if you’re a winner.

I love eyelets. I love brads…they’re two of my favorite embellishments!

To enter the contest, go to Creating Keepsake blog.

Post from: Blisstree

Contest: Win Some Eyelets

Image: Flickr - Bebe Beaux

1. Give the kids their own scrapbook album to work on. It’s a nice touch for the kids to have an album that they can call their own. I gave one to my daughter and even now at 12, she proudly shows off her scrapbook layouts to friends and family

2. I followed the scrapbookers’ golden rule that everything must be acid-free and all that. They were way too expensive so I gave my daughter either generic brands of acid-free scrapbook papers, embellishments, adhesives and the like. I didn’t give her the expensive ones that I use as like I said, they were way too expensive for kids to use!

3. Make copies of photos that your kids wish to use. Do not give them the original copies of photos. I am talking about photos BEFORE the arrival of digital prints in the scene. I didn’t want my daughter to lay her hands on original photos that she has to be careful with. I wanted her to be able to use any of the photos with ease. I also wanted to be able to relax so I let her choose the photos she wanted to work on and I copied them from the negatives.

What about you? Have you got other tips for scrapbooking with children?

Post from: Blisstree

3 Tips for Scrapbooking with Children

Image: sxc.hu

Should I plan something representing our life, either a quilt or mixed media collage?  The more I think of it, the more it seems a possibility.

What should I include?  Where will I research?

• Photos from engagement and wedding
• Reminiscenses of Jim’s years as an Air Force pilot and me a military wife.
• Owning airplanes and Jim’s cross-country trip in a bi-plane
• The arrival of our daughter and her growing up years
• Pack trips to the Gros Ventre Mountains of Wyoming with her
• Beth’s marriage
• The arrival of our grandchildren
• My mother’s Alzheimer’s years and our family involvement with her journey
• My recovery from a broken back after an accident
• Bits from my writing and quilting careers
• Our years now and what we’re looking forward to

What would you quilt or sketch for your life? You don’t have to be our age.  You can use your growing up years, school years, marriage, children’s youth, travels, careers.  Take singular events or compile them into a collage of  many adventures.

Have you done this already?

Post from: Blisstree

Can You Quilt or Collage Your Life?

This lovely one from jewelry designer Catherine Michiels features three gold charms strung on a length of variegated silk ribbon - and retails for $220 US.

It’s beautiful, but of course, I like the challenge of making something myself - especially for a piece of jewelry that’s a tad beyond my budget.

My local jewelry supply store has some very similar silk ribbon - it even comes in variegated colors too.  I could also cut thin strips of duppioni silk, zig-zag the edges and use that.  Hey, I could even hit the local scrapbooking section in the craft store - I’ve seen some pretty ribbons in there too…

image: Saks 5th Avenue

Post from: Blisstree

Pretty Silk Ribbon Jewelry

• Do you need an easy and cute summer blouse?  Check out this great how-to from Clever Girl - it uses a 2nd hand shirt to make a feminine camisole.
• I can’t stand having hair on the back of my neck during the summer - so this dandy little fabric bun maker from Ikat Bag might be a good option to try.

• Ever wanted to sew your own lingerie?  Isew.Co.Uk has a great tutorial for making a pretty pair with lace.
• And of course, then you need somewhere nice to store them :-)  Check out CraftStylish’s great quilted lingerie bag tute.

Happy Crafting!

image: C Findlay-Harder

Post from: Blisstree

Crafting Around the Web