Fussy-cut your photos and hand journaling with Lizzy Hill!

G'day mates! My guest today is the vivacious Lizzy Hill [waves enthusiastically to Lizzy..."We are on the same continent right now!"]. Her style is is an eclectic explosion of patterns, colours and ooooh... so awesome textures. There are always clever little bits and pieces on her creations that make me go..."Hmmm...I so want to try that technique...or that washi tape" Yes friends, she has been a key contributor to my current washi tape obsession *winks*. I love that she goes to the heart of why we scrapbook - to keep authentic memories of our lives and not just use pretty things - as reflected in the humour she injects as well as the hand journaling she includes on her projects. Today, she shares how to fussy-cut your photos and incorporate hand journaling. She is also hosting a challenge with a fabulous RAK for a winner! :)

But first, let's admire her lovely body of work....

Hello fellow scrappers – I’m honoured [& a tad overwhelmed, I must add] to be here on Yvonne’s FABBO blog!

Who am I? An Aussie who lives just above Sydney on the Central Coast. I have 2 grown up sons & 1 grandbaby, plus a pile of ‘steps’….a great assortment of scrappy subjects! I’ve been scrapping about 4 years…& I’m currently on the DT for Scrap Friends. I’ve also had a few pages published in Scrapbooking Memories, an Australian scrapping magazine.

I’m a bit of an eclectic scrapper – I THINK my style is rather bold…I LOVE challenges & challenging myself & I’ll have a go at anything scrappy wise – on or off the page. Lately, I’ve been drawn to badges, mists & masking, & using liquid pearls. I usually journal on my pages – often by hand - & I’ve been really enjoying fussy cutting up my photos…..& that’s my challenge to you!

Here’s my example:

You see, the background is completely nebulous…so, I got rid of it. Easier to ‘tell the story’ without that distraction!

Here’s my hand journaling, telling the ‘story’.

A badge! And since feathers seem to be ‘hot’ atm…I added some I picked up outside our house – you don’t need to spend a fortune on scrap supplies. And they can be misted, if you want…

I really like to make elements ‘mine’ – sooo I added Prima alphabet stickers to this banner I made…the seam binding ribbon gave it a nice dimension, too. Similarly, I tend to ‘mix’ products – so there’s a pile of different manufacturers featured here. Try it! I think it gives your scrapping a more ‘individual’ flavour!

I do LOTS of blogging…& see stuff that I think ‘Ha! I’d forgotten about that.’ Hence the bottle cap here – it’s nice to revisit stuff you haven’t used or thought about using for a while! And you can use little scraps of paper & create a unique embellishment of your very own easily. This one is finished off with Glossy Accents.

That tab had the ‘wrong’ word on it – so I just covered it with another sticker. Easy peasy. LOVE those glass beads & you can see my Liquid Pearls in there, too.

When adding photos like this, you need to ‘ground’ them – so I’ve tucked them into strips of paper to make them look more ‘finished’.

Hope this has given you some inspiration for cutting into those photos - there’s nothing like moving outta that comfort zone & stretching your creativity….soooooo my challenge is this:

 I’d LOVE to see you FUSSY CUTTING around those photos AND/OR using HAND JOURNALING on your creation! Which is your biggest fear? Now’s the time to conquer them & have a bit of fun…I’ve a wee RAK up for grabs…of course, you may love using these techniques…in which case, I’d LOVE to see what you come up with!!!

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Ready to play along with Lizzy's fabulous challenge? Please link your newly created projects featuring fussy-cutting AND/OR using hand journaling via Inklinz [located at the end of the post] by Friday May 3rd, 11.59pm (GMT+8).

As always, please leave a little love for my guest Lizzy. :)

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10 things around your home to upcycle

There are many "treasures" within our homes that we can give a new lease of life to just by thinking a little creatively. Here are 10 things around your home to upcycle. :)

Cake box to pretty gift box

1. Turn an ordinary cake box into a pretty box.

One of the easiest things to upcycle is a sturdy box. They make great storage as well as gift boxes.

Make your own embellishment using packaging materials

2. Packaging materials can be "prettied" up and made into embellishments.

Add little buttons and trinkets to packaging materials to create your own one-of-a-kind embellishment.

Old clock to mixed media photo frame

3. An old glass clock can be turned into a fabulous photo frame.

So the old clock is no longer working? Turn it into a fabulous photo frame with a photo of your loved ones.

Old board book to wall hanging

4. An old board book can make a cool wall hanging.

Too lazy to make a mini album with an old board book? Cut a window, glue the pages together, throw on some paint and add embellishments for a cool wall hanging!

CD container to gift box

5. A CD container can be turned into a unique gift box.

A little washi tape and pretty bloom turned an ordinary CD container into a sweet gift box that can be a pretty display too. :)

Compact case to grandma's brag "book"

6. An old compact case makes a lightweight brag book to carry around.

An alternative to carrying a mini album....this is great for whipping out in public to show off pics of your loved ones.

Tart molds to tiered stand

7. Old tart molds make a sturdy tiered stand for little knick knacks.

Old tart molds can be given a new lease of life with patterned papers, mediums and embellishments.

Mini packaging boxes to chest of drawers

8. Little trinkets boxes can be piled up to make a cute chest of drawers.

Combine little trinket boxes to create a cute chest of drawers that make a fun and unique packaging for small gifts.

Shipping box to decorated shipping box

9. Priority boxes can be given a vintage makeover.

Sturdy shipping boxes can be decorated into lovely boxes to be mailed off.

Tea tin to trinket holder 

10. Tea tins make excellent trinket holders.

Use scrap paper and left-over embellishments to decorate a tea tin to store your little trinkets. They deserve a pretty home too! :)

There you have it. 10 things around your home to upcycle. What do you think?

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My new "skill"....and a challenge winner!

So I've been growing my list of "skills" related to kids....with the niece and nephew naturally being the "scapegoats"...*LOL* 

Check out littlest nephew J and niece S rocking their new haircuts! *winks*

Playing along with the challenges at Scrapfriends and Scrap it with a song.

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Thanks to all who played along with my guest Anupama's banner challenge. She has picked her fave....

Congrats Julie J! You are the winner! Please email me with your mailing details!

P/s: Can't wait for you to meet this month's guest! :)

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Decorated glass bottle with washi tape flag

Want to make a quick project this weekend? How about a decorated glass bottle with washi tape flag?

Here are the supplies I used.

1. Start by cleaning the surface of your glass bottle with a little soap and water. 

2. Pick a stencil of your choice and apply glass paint.

3. Once the paint dries, adhere some embellishments.

4. Cut disposable chopstick and scrap paper to desired length. Adhere paper to stick.
5. Add washi tape to flag.
6. Adhere sticker sentiment.

There you have it. A really simple weekend project to decorate your desk. You could add some water and a sweet bloom from your garden and it becomes a cute little vase. :)

P/s: Happy weekend friends! There's a new challenge up at Zeus and Zoe and LESSology Challenge #24: Are you a Cover girl?. Come play along if time permits!

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I have gone to the dark side! [insert your best evil laughter here...]

Yes my friends. I have gone to the dark side. Of the colour spectrum that is. *LOL*

The background was created with Derwent Inktense Blocks and water on gessoed pages [I like to buy small boxes of mediums so that I get a variety without the heavy investment! If you notice, I tend to have obsessions that taper off after a massive overdose...*LOL* ]

It was a little challenging going to the dark side! *winks* But I'm glad my Ranger Distress Stain in Picket Fence finally came in handy. Love the splats. And I made a little dent in my rub-on collection. :)

Of course, it is inevitable that washi tape has made its way into my art journal too right? *winks*

P/s: I will be in Melbourne next week. Email me if you want to meet up! :)

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When one wants to cover everything in washi tape...

So the washi tape obsession is going a little out of hand when one wants to cover everything in washi tape right? *winks*

This time I upcycled a CD/DVD holder for LESSology Challenge #4: Are you a cover girl?. 

It was a super quick project! :)

I added a little sparkle to the bloom with Ranger Stickles in rock candy...

P/s: Come play along with my guest Anupama's banner challenge! It ends on Friday!:)

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Need some tag ideas? Here are 6!

Hello friends! I've been on a tag craze recently so I went through my photo gallery to pick out 6. In case you need some tag ideas! *winks*

Distressed tag

Here's the one where I went a little crazy with my Ranger stash....inks, stickles, embossing powder...[I lovelovelove this tag...I refuse to give it away! Okay...make me an offer I can't refuse! *winks*]

Pretty tag

This one I made for a blog reader who requested for a tag. *stress* I decided to incorporate everything I like on a tag.... [yeah...I like a lot of stuff..*LOL*]

Wonder tag

The tag I made when I was totally into punchinella and wanted to try them on everything. I used it as a mask with Ranger distress inks and embossing powders.

Travel tag

The tag I made when I was in my Golden glass bead gel craze...err...still in that phase actually. *LOL*

Glittered tag

This was the tag I made because I really wanted to use the chevron washi tape and glitter! :)

Vintage tag using old book paper

I made this tag when I was really into old book paper...

There you have it. 6 different tags. What do you think? Do you have a fave?

*Edited* Check out this post for 10 more tag ideas!

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Hello cupcake....

I can't say no to a yummy cupcake...

"Errr....one red velvet please! " 

Even better when it's served in a nice cosy setting...

Can you spot my washi tape? 

Love the pretty trims, papers and charms from the Zeus and Zoe store. :)

Playing along with the challenge at Skissedilla.

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