"Art is my vehicle through life; may we share the ride together." Ron Wickersham

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Two more days!



Just two more days!  Here are a few more sneak peeks of the kit to whet your appetite!  Lots of color and textures in this kit.





And here's a sneak peek of one of the projects I designed for this kit.




This kit will be available for pre-order on Wed. June 1 on the website (www.frontporchkit.com).  The full reveal of everything included in the kit will be on Thursday June 2. 

Want a chance to win a free kit?  Go to The Little Blue House blog, leave a comment and become a follower.  One lucky commenter will win this fabulous kit!

More news - the Great American Scrapbook Convention will be in town (Arlington) this week and The Little Blue House will have a booth!  Come visit us on the back wall, Booth 1111 (easy to remember!), where we will have a great Make-n-Take.  We will be displaying lots of our class projects, the designers' kit projects and we will also have this Front Porch Kit for sale!  Hope to see you there.

Monday, May 30, 2011

A New Front Porch Kit is coming soon!


The June Front Porch Kit will be officially revealed on June 3 on Friday Night Live at The Little Blue House.  Sneak peeks and pre-ordering information will be on the website soon.  In the meantime, how about a few little peeks here?!

Introducing.........

ONE SUNNY DAY

June 2011 Front Porch Kit



Lots of fun, summery colors. What could that bit of yellow be?



Teal, of course.  And lots of yummy buttons!


More peeks tomorrow.

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Friends and ATCs

A close friend and I decided to have an ATC swap.  The theme was "friendship" of course.

I used this Hampton Arts stamp of three beautiful vintage ladies and a Morningstar sentiment stamp that seemed to fit the image perfectly.  For the background I used light turquoise and cream acrylic paints. I put a puddle of each on my craft mat and then swiped it on the white cardstock base with an old credit card. This resulted in a mottled, almost marbled background which I then inked with Broken China and Vintage Photo Distress Inks.  I stamped with black permanent ink and used red glaze pen for the lips and a bit of Stickles for the earrings. Gold Krylon pen was used for the edging.




This was the lovely ATC I received.  Can you believe that we both used similar coloring and the gold pen edging?  I guess it's true that "birds of a feather flock together!"  We do have very similar tastes.  I love how she used the book text for background (a favorite technique of mine) and the molding paste/spackle with impressed stamp adds alot of dimension.




Coming next week - another Front Porch Kit! Sneak peeks will begin on Monday with the full reveal on Friday Night Live at The Little Blue House. Stay tuned!

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Get "SMASHED" at the Little Blue House!

Join us this Thursday, Friday and Saturday for a special introduction to a fabulous NEW artistic adventure!

SMASH is an exciting new program from K&Company that takes scrapbooking back to its roots. Simplistic, on-the-fly, and with no rules and no special crafting ability needed, you can Smash your everyday life between the pages of our contemporary-style Smash Books.  
Book and Pen An ultra-convenient combo glue pen/journaling marker comes attached to each book so it’s always at hand when you need it. Now, how cool is that?!

So, what do you Smash? Well, it doesn’t have to be a life event, just the special little moments and mementos of your day—some of that stuff in your junk drawer, for example. A snapshot, a ticket stub from that movie you loved, a newspaper clipping, a magazine snippet, a cardboard coaster from a favorite restaurant, your child’s first crayon doodle...get the idea? Smash it, jot a note or add a caption sticker, and go!

Check out this video, and feel free to hum along... :)
http://eksuccessbrands.com/kandcompany/smash/
Smash video

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Green Crafting

While surfing blogs today, I found a great idea on an old post at http://www.secretpieshoppe.blogspot.com/2010/02/green-craft-envelopes-made-with.html.  She used old magazine pages to create regular, A2 envelopes.  I've been in the middle of sorting and getting rid of lots of old magazines, so I thought this was particularly timely!

First you need to print out the envelope template on cardstock (8.5 x 11).  If you click the link above and scroll to the end of the post, you will see a link to her template which you can save and print out.  (Note - you could also just open an old envelope and use it as your template.)

Then go through old magazines and pick out pages you like. Place the template on the page so the main image will be right-side up when the envelope is folded. Trace, cut, fold and tape edges.  You will be surprised at the interesting results!

Here are some I made:







Fun; a great alternative to boring white envies; and a chance to recycle!

Monday, May 23, 2011

Birthday Explosion Box Class

I also designed another explosion box for our current class feature.  This one can be used for birthdays or any congratulatory celebration.  I used the new Soiree paper line from Pink Paislee and love the fresh, summery colors - just perfect for celebrating!

This is the closed box. It is approximately four inches square.


When you lift up the cover, the box explodes into many layers.  Photos, notes and, of course, gift cards can be added for a special gift for a special someone. (And this gift doesn't need wrapping!)

Look closely and you will see banners, ruffles and a little 3d cupcake. Fun, fun, fun!



Again, call The Little Blue House at 817-431-7930 to sign up for the class.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

New Classes for summer

Our Open House was very successful, even though we had heavy rains and sporadic hail on Friday. The Little Blue House looked so cheerful and pretty with all the summer, party and patriotic class projects displayed!

This is the patriotic "American Pride"star book I designed.  It was so much fun to make! I personalized it by using military photos of my father, my father-in-law, two of my husband's uncles and my husband. The first photo shows the book closed; the others show different views when it is open.  It makes a nice display for patriotic holidays.



If you are local and would like to take the class, call the LBH at 817-431-7930 to sign up!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Open House Tomorrow and Saturday!

Summer SuRPriSe Open House!
Friday May 20th
10am-5pm
&
Saturday May 21
10am-5pm

Hmmm...Why are we using the word Surprise?!?!
Well, you'll just have to come and see...
We have reset the store with Sizzling new collections and class offerings that are sure to melt your creaive hearts!  You will also enjoy a free Make & Take & Prize Give-Aways!

 So put on your favorite pair of flip flops & grab your shades because it's gonna be a SUNsational event!
We hope to see you at our
Summer SuRPriSe Open House!
Miss Tracy :)
Rhonda, Kristyn, Susan, Elaine

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Graduation Explosion Box Class

Almost a week since I last posted - wow, where does the time go?  Last week we revealed a few more new classes for graduation.  I created this explosion box - a great gift idea for the graduate. There are places for photos, notes and gift cards!



 When you lift off the top, the box "explodes" into several layers as shown below.



Here's a close-up of the center where I arranged a little congratulatory sentiment with some glittery stars.


You can sign up for this class now at The Little Blue House.  There's also a great layout and a beautiful graduation memory book available.

Stay tuned for many more new classes which will be revealed this Friday and Saturday at our "Summer Surprise Open House." I'm busy, busy creating which is why I've haven't been blogging!



Monday, May 9, 2011

LBH Art Group - May

It's time once again for our Little Blue House Art Group meetings. They will be on Wednesday, 6-9pm, and Friday, 10am-1pm.  This month we will be creating "Artful Accessories" using game pieces (dominoes, tri-ominoes, bamboo tiles) and bottle caps.  We'll use many different techniques and mediums to alter these.

These are a few samples I made for ideas for the group. I used wooden dominoes and plastic ones. They can be made into magnets, pendants or pins.  I also created a funky little "art girl" using a bottlecap and wine cork.



If you are local and are interested in joining us, check out the LBH blog for more information and contact The Little Blue House at 817-431-7930 to reserve a space.  I believe there are a few seats still available.