pretty paper. true stories. {and scrapbooking classes with cupcakes.}

For the American Crafts blog, I was challenged to find a clever use for Patchems, the embellishments that are just like merit badges only designed to coordinate with paper collections. My answer is remarkably simple: make cards. But cards for certain people.

Each of these cards will be going to someone I know will remove the patch and stitch it to her camp blanket or backpack. Then the patch gets to do double-duty – cute card, but also something to keep! (Why yes, I did often get excited by birthday cards that included that ‘it’s my birthday’ badge when I was a child. And by ‘when I was a child’, I clearly mean ‘for every birthday in my life’.)

The three patches on these cards all come in the same set from the Amy Tangerine collection, and the cards use other elements from the same, including lots of paper scraps. And aside from the stitching, I made these outside in a lovely day in the park. So the leaf on the Hello Autumn card may have just fallen off the tree onto my project and suddenly found itself attacked with adhesive and included on the card. Seems fair enough: fall on my head while I’m crafting and I will just glue you to something.

So if you had a pack of Patchems, what clever thing would you do with them?

xlovesx

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Apparently I decided this album needed a little something. Or it was cold. So I stitched it a quilt from fabric paper. I’m sure that makes total and complete sense, right?

I love log cabin quilt designs because they are so quick and simple and just a little bit mathematical, getting the pieces lined up so it all looks at once random and orderly. Plus I keep meaning to use this slightly older stack of Dear Lizzy fabric paper, so this seemed like the answer. I cut all the fabric paper into two-inch strips then pieced it together on a sheet of kraft cardstock, and when the square was complete, I machine stitched it in that spiral-box until my eyes were crossed! The edges seemed too harsh on the album, so I cheated and added a bit of crocheted trim around the edges, then fancied up a tag for the title. It’s all stuck to the front of a 12×12 American Crafts album with copious amounts of double-sided tape.

I’m guessing the tag will eventually be worse for wear, but the quilt is flat so it should be fine, provided I don’t do something stupid like pour my coffee all over it. (You laugh, but I did that to myself today so it seems entirely possible.)

There’s a quilter’s step-by-step for the log cabin design here, if you fancy giving it a go!

I hope you’re having a lovely week so far. What is everyone working on?

xlovesx

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Hello there hoppers – today we’re hopping through the American Crafts design team blogs and we have all been set the same challenge: make a layout with something from each of the new lines: Amy Tangerine, Daydreams, Garden Cafe, Nightfall and Hollyday!

_{Supplies include Sarah Script letter stickers in white (4133), Fancy glitter Thickers in strawberry (53111), Goodness Thickers in slate (53249), glitter edged buttons (85558), Elements buttons (85573), Savor Remarks stickers (42210), Rose’s Kitchen paper (35540), Joyful Day paper (35603), Fine Day paper (35606), Autumn Cider paper (35519), Yes Peas paper (35549), Wanderlust paper (35548), Cafe Iris paper (35541), all by American Crafts.}

I love the birthday colour scheme that comes from a combination of the Amy and Garden papers, and the b-sides from Daydreams are the most versatile patterns ever – tiny stripes, polka dots and grids. Nightfall includes some very versatile cream patterns. Then I added stickers from Garden Cafe plus buttons from Daydreams and Hollyday. I love the glitter detail on the Christmas button pack. If you stopped by earlier today, you might see a resemblance – this is one example for this weekend’s scrapbook starting point. More striped-background wonderment!

There are plenty of chances to win American Crafts prizes throughout the blog hop today. Leave a comment on this post to enter the drawing for a pack of adorable Details embellishments. Hop through the designers’ blogs for additional chances to win then enter the big drawing at the AC Studio blog where someone will win two full collections of crafty goodness! Both the big AC giveaway and my giveaway are open until Wednesday the 21st of September 2011, 9am Pacific, which is 5pm here in the UK. If you don’t win, you can also shop for all the new AC lines here.

The next stop on the hop is Suzy – go there once you have entered the drawing here. I know she’ll take great care of you!

Thanks for stopping by!

xlovesx

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September first was a pretty big day this year – back to school with Learn Something New but also my first official day designing for American Crafts. My first project for their Studio blog is online now and you can see the full layout here. So excited to be working with American Crafts over the next year! Click here to shop from oodles and oodles of American Crafts supplies, including nearly two hundred currently on sale!

xlovesx

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I’m curious: did you love stickers way before you became a scrapbooker? I spent many a hard-saved penny on Hello Kitty and Lisa Frank stickers as a girl, so maybe that’s why I love stickers on my pages!

More than that, I love mixing and matching stickers. Almost everything on this layout is from American Crafts (barring the Glimmer Mist and one small piece of yellow patterned paper, I think!) but the stickers come from both the Peachy Keen collection and the original spring Dear Lizzy line (if you scroll right to the bottom of the page, there are still some things from that line and they are now a great bargain). I love how these two collections have a different style but similar colour palettes that make them work together.

While I’m at it, if you’re on Facebook or Twitter, have you connected with American Crafts? You can like them here on Facebook and follow them here on Twitter. And you know just one reason you should like them? They have generously sponsored a fabulous prize pack full of American Crafts products for the lucky winner of this challenge! I definitely like them for that. It would be awesome if you did too. Just sayin’.

So here’s a new challenge for you: Create a project using stickers from more than one collection. (The stickers can be the same manufacturer or different manufacturers, but not the same paper collection – make sense?) You can follow my layout as inspiration if you like but it’s definitely not required!

To enter to win, you’ll need to upload your page to your blog or a page gallery (like Two Peas, UKScrappers or Flickr) and link to your entry using the widget below. Be sure to link directly to the relevant page and NOT to your main blog URL.

One entry will be randomly selected to win a prize pack from American Crafts! Entries close at midnight next Sunday (21st August 2011).

Feel free to use the comment section to chat about this challenge, as the entries should go in the linky widget!

PS: It’s getting late here, so this is our final challenge for Friday… but there are many tomorrow so I hope to see you for more cropping fun! So far you can find a sketch, a giveaway, a special discount code, the printable challenge and this sticker challenge!

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After the success of the Dear Lizzy line (pretty much entirely on awesome sale here) by American Crafts last year, I wondered if they would start collaborating with other uniquely styled designers and indeed they have. This is the new Amy Tangerine line by Amy Tan and American Crafts. It’s a little quirkier than what you would expect from American Crafts usual lines. (Oh, and there are new ‘usual’ lines from AC too – I’ll cover those in another post.) This promotional video gives you an idea to the line’s inspirations and also shows you the clever minibook that is a centrepiece of the collection.

The line has four points of inspiration: fashion, craft, travel and office. So there are airplanes, cameras, stitches and graph papers.

The papers have two things that are a little unexpected for American Crafts: some of the papers have stitching and some of the designs are not an all over pattern, but a blocked design. There are also fabric papers and flat papers.

Love that sheet of Details embellishments in the tiny embroidery hoops.

Ribbons, two sets of printed washi tapes, fabric-covered brads, leaves, stamps and a very cool pack of die cuts in all different shapes and sizes.

Layered stickers at the top and fabric stickers (plus shaped paper clips) below. I love the fabric stickers in both design and texture.

The big booklet of coordinating sticker images – love that bold woodgrain silhouette!

Here you can see everything in the pack.

Crafty goodness from Amy and the American Crafts design team.

The minibook is definitely worthy of an ‘Oh cute!’ exclamation. Kraft cover, woodgrain embossed clear panels on the outside, pages inside are a mix of sizes, colours and patterns.

Amy’s book as it was taking shape over the days of the show. You can use this ‘smash’ style or with more planned designs like a traditional scrapbooking mini.

More cute creations to show what you can make with the products…

Of course it wouldn’t be American Crafts without Thickers! One all caps, one all lower and one with both.

And there’s Miss Amy herself!

The Amy Tangerine line from American Crafts will hit stores in August. Click here to shop for scrapbooking supplies from American Crafts.

xlovesx

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Happy Saturday morning party-goers! Shall we put a little party music that won’t shake the place too much at this early hour?

So a new layout and a new challenge for you! Your challenge is to create a layout with a background of four patterned paper squares, like the one above! I used American Crafts papers for my page but you can use any supplies you like.

Make something, take a picture and upload it to your blog or a page gallery. Then leave a comment on this post to enter!

One project will be randomly chosen to win a prize package filled with scrapbooking supplies from American Crafts. You can enter until 6am UK time on Monday 19th April.

My five favourite products from American Crafts?
Albums. Almost all my albums are American Crafts D-Ring binders. My general albums are black fabric-covered and then I also have some of the patterned and the modern albums (which are great for creating your own cover design) for special themes. I’ve also used the 8×8 AC albums for lots of smaller projects, including two Christmas journals, and they stand up to lots of travel and wear and still look beautiful, plus I think the whole line is very reasonably priced.

Pearl Brads. I love these and could add them to everything I make. I used to staple the ends of my ribbon always. Now I tend to add pearl brads. They also look great in the middle of a flower, and I love that they come in so many pretty colours – not just white and cream.

Ribbons…like this one. I love the entire line of AC ribbons, but seriously this is just too lovely to believe. The fact that they call this card ‘Lovely’ by name is just the perfect description.

Adhesives. I went to CHA this year with ‘Search out decent adhesives’ literally written on my to-do list. I had loved Kokuyo, but it was never available in Europe and now wasn’t easy to import either. Surely someone was going to realise that every scrapbooker wishes they had an adhesive that was reliable, simple to refill, easy to find and not ridiculous in price. And presto, I tried the new This to That rollers from American Crafts. I loved them. I ordered a zillion. I still love them. End of story.

And this stamp. It has the teeniest dotted grid on a wood-mount stamp and it’s just perfect for adding a little something to tags, backgrounds and cards. It’s my go-to stamp right now.

Do you have a favourite AC product? Feel free to share! You can also find American Crafts on their blog and Twitter and shop here for American Crafts products.

xlovesx

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So excited to see this line in person — and excited to share too! It’s the new Dear Lizzy collection from American Crafts, designed by the always adorable Elizabeth Kartchner in beautiful tones of pink, aqua, yellow and brown. With bicycles, handwriting and bunting galore!

Chipboard and glittered Thickers. Yum!

Plus Flair, clear stamps, layered stickers, rub-ons, ribbons, papers, die cuts, chipboard…oh my, oh my. There’s even fabric paper in there, with a beautiful printed canvas texture. It’s so perfectly spring and very happy. It’s definitely girly, but it will work with lots of family pages too, just to get started. I think it’s a line cardmakers and compulsive-party-decorators will also love.

My Must-Have: this gorgeous, gorgeous ribbon. Words fail me. I am in love! Sigh!

Here’s a look around Lizzy’s tea party at the American Crafts booth…

Dear Lizzy will be in stores very soon.

Click here to shop for scrapbooking supplies from American Crafts!

xlovesx

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