My cuisine of choice would be....Japanese!

As much as I hate to be predictable, *winks* my cuisine of choice is always Japanese. Eating is one of those things that engages all your senses at once and Japanese really ticks all the boxes for me. :)

The food comes and I always take time to marvel at the pretty presentation. Just for a while...before the whole gluttony sets in...*LOL*

What is your cuisine of choice?

Playing along with My Creative Sketches.

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Your weekend project: the 15 minute altered photo in a frame

I know a lot of people like to buy photo frames to alter. But what if you like the photo frame and don't want to alter it? Then do something to the photo! *winks*

I started with this Ikea 4x6 photo frame . Well you know I have a thing for woodgrain, yeah, even faux woodgrain..*LOL* so I didn't want to paint over it. 

1. Print two 4x6 photos.

2. Fussy-cut silhouette of one photo and adhere to other photo using 3D dots.

3. Adhere paper blooms to foliage on photo. Add some fun elements. [All elements must fit on photo

4. Remove the glass panel and frame stand components. 

5. Adhere photo to a piece of 4x6 cardboard. [so that it fits snugly when all the frame components are reassembled.]

6. Reassemble the frame components without the glass panel.

7. Stand back and admire all 15 minutes of your handiwork. :)

Once you get "weary" of your photo, you can just take the whole thing out and incorporate it on a layout and make another. Easy project, eh?

Happy weekend friends! 

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Will you be nicer to me Paris?

Please tell me I'm not the only one who enjoys French-inspired "everything" but not the city of Paris? *winks* Oh yes, I had a terrible experience in Paris. From the not-so-friendly Parisians to the long queue at the Eiffel Tower to the public holiday closure of Champs-Élysées to the discovery that the tour itinerary did not include a visit to The Lourve to the 14 times I rode on the teacup at Disneyland because my sister was too scared to try the roller coaster. *LOL*

Seriously though, I need to give Paris another visit....seeing how much I now appreciate French food and wine. Maybe Paris will be nicer to me the second time around. Also, my sister now loves roller coaster rides! :)

I started the canvas with the sole intention of using this lovely fabric bloom from my bloggy pal Mitra Pratt and to incorporate cardboard for LESSology Challenge #43: Cardboard Central.

But as you can see, I added a lot more ephemera as usual! :)

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10 ways to use up your scraps

Hands up if you are keeping all the little bits of scrap paper with the hope that someday you will actually use them! *winks* Today I want to share 10 ways to use up some of your bits of scrap paper. :)

Mixed media canvas for The Crafter's Workshop

1. Create textures on your background.

I had leftover strips of paper after cutting my 6x6 patterned paper to fit my canvas. I just adhered those strips to create texture on my background. Just glue them down and paint them to match your background. Or maybe run an edge punch for a little more interest.

The one with a lot of brads

2. Mix them up to create a collage of mats for your photos.

I love to use bits and pieces to mat my photos because I don't like to waste paper and I prefer my pages to be relativel flat. If you look carefully, you will notice that my photo mats are often scraps pieced together to create the illusion of a fuller piece of paper. *winks*

The one about the clay dinosaurs

3. Punch shapes with your scrap papers as embellishments for your layout.

I wanted to extend on the misted stars on the background. So I punched out some stars from scrap paper which I added with 3D pop dots as fun embellishments for my layout.

The story about the star tortoise

4. Use the punched shapes as journaling blocks.

You can also punch fun shapes of your scraps for your journaling.

I love hanging out with boys

5. Tear your scrap paper for a fun and textured border.

Paper tearing is a great way to add texture and use up long pieces of scrap paper.

The Gangster Gang in cool sunnies

6. Handcut shapes from scrap cork paper for a cool background design.

I had long rectangle strip of cork paper so I handcut the triangles for a cool background design for my layout.

My little helper

7. Cut them into strips and use them like washi tape.

I love using my scrap strips like wash tape for a fun background design. Cutting the strips the same width creates cohesiveness and allows you to mix any pattern or colour.

Wild antics on a layout

8. Tuck little pieces of scrap paper between your photo collage to create a cohesive look.

This layout was a little busy so I created a cohesive look by tucking black scraps of paper. The black helped to anchor the photos.

Your weekend project: 10 minute magnet

9. Use your scrap pieces for a small altered project.

This small piece of canvas paper was perfect for my magnet project. You could use your smaller scraps to cover clothespins or a paper clip.

These two have been getting their game on

10. Use your scraps to cut fishtails for a fun look on your page.

When you are too lazy to reach for your decorative punches, there's always fun fish tails that you can cut with your trusty scissors. A little more fun than plain straight lines right?

There you have it. 10 ways to use up your scraps. Which one will you try?

P/s:  Click here for links to more tips! :)

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A fishy tale

As a kid, I was terrified when I had to walk by the tanks of fishes at the store. Because they also displayed the creepy crawlies and the tiny frogs that were fish food next to the fish tanks. *eeeeek*

So the fishes I rear now don't eat live food that crawl or jump. Yeah, I'm sure they are like thinking, "How about some worms?" No way. Just dried food. And sometimes frozen worms. *LOL*

For more details on this canvas, please read this post, A mixed media canvas featuring The Crafter's Workshop Koi Pond stencil.

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Catching dreams in 2015

Hello friends! :) Hope 2015 has been good for you so far. Thought I would start the year with a symbolic project featuring a dream catcher...so that we can all catch our dreams...*high fives all around*

The base of the canvas was coloured with Shimmerz Inklingz. I've had them for months but never really used them. [Ahem...hoarder! *winks*]  The dream catcher was something I made when I was a teenager. Yeah, someone gave it to me as a present. It came with instructions of course. But I was a non-conformist even back then...*LOL*

Playing along with The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge.

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Happy holidays friends! :)

Hello friends! Just want to thank you for visiting my blog in 2014 and leaving me such encouraging comments. :) Hope you are enjoying the holiday season with your loved ones. 

And getting lots of happy mail from your friends from all over the world.:)

I'll be taking my annual bloggy break to recharge my batteries and work ahead on some creative projects. Happy holidays and see you back in 2015! :)

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An awesome day....and some giveaway winners!

Back in October, I had one of those awesome days. You know, when the stars are somewhat aligned and everything goes your way. :)

It started with an awesome breakfast. Now, for me, an awesome breakfast is always Eggs Benedict done right. :)

Then we chanced upon an awesome Mac sale. Possibly the best sale I've been to. My iPhone got a lot of new "clothes". *winks* Did I mention that they served Krispy Kreme doughnuts and coffee at the sale too? Yep. All the awesomeness before lunch.

Playing along with Stuck?! Sketches.
____________________________

A big thank you to those who took part in my little Christmas giveaways!

The winner of this mixed media canvas is....Lizzy C!




The winner of the black box filled with embellishments is....Jelissa Mei!

Congratulations Lizzy C and Jelissa Mei! Please send me an email with your mailing details.:)

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Pastel colours and floral clusters...

Hmmm...I think I am actually getting the hang of pastel colours and the floral clusters. :)

Oh yes, that would be an 8x8 canvas panel on a 12x12 canvas. As always, overzealous colouring and stamping on the background patterned paper requires serious coverup. *winks*

And then of course, I really got into the whole layering of embellishments. 

You know how it is....the brain says "Stop wasting embellishments!", the heart says "Just one more here...and here...and here..." and before you know it, there's glue on the embellishment and you just have to glue it down. *LOL*

Lots of fun textures...lace, satin, metal, wood, plastic...

I love the shimmer from the Wink of Stella brush pen....

I also added more sparkle with glass bead gel and glitter paint.

I went in with some Crackle accents on the Prima wooden ATC.

It was a lot of work but I had fun...and now a valid reason to buy more embellishments...you know, as replenishments of course. *winks*

Playing along with the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge...I went with Stencil, Glitter and Patterned paper.

*Edited* This layout earned an Honorable Mention at The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge.

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