TBT - A Cheeky Rockabilly Frame

Hello!

I've missed a few TBTs so today I'm jumping back in to it with this project I never shared, an altered frame with an oldie TGF image.

Sorry, I don't have many details to share since this was made a few years ago; all I can say is that I loved that paper so I used it to alter this $1 frame.  hahaha!  Can't recall the paper company because I got this from one of my crafty buddies, Kathy Dinh.  But I can say that the stamped image is from The Greeting Farm, Cheeky Rockabilly.  Remember those Cheekys?  They were one of my favorites. I added the flower in her hair to mimic the beautiful flower in the frame.  This is hanging up in my cubicle at work and I have been meaning to share it for the past few years.  Better late than never right?  :)

Thanks for stopping by!   

June Secret Sister Swap

Hello!

Today I wanted to share my June Secret Sister Swap.  The theme was summer fun.  My partner was Cyndi Kim.  I know she's been missing Hawai'i so I thought I'd make her a Hawaiian themed frame.

I was super tempted to keep this one, but I knew Cyndi would love it so off it went.  I broke down and cut in to some hoarded Aloha print patterned paper for this one.  I think next time I won't use the white gesso, it washed out the beautiful colors on the papers too much.  I had pictured something else in my mind, but alas once it went down there was no going back.  Again another learning experience.  The computer generated sentiment was printed on vellum paper and glued down.  It says, "No matter how far you go, Hawai'i will always be in your soul"

The kiddie images are Pua & Kaleo from Sisters Stamps.  I paper pieced their outfits using scraps from one of the orange patterned papers.  Fun cut them out and glued them down flat on to the bottom of the frame.  The hibiscus flowers and leaves were stamped and cut using one of my favorite (sadly discontinued) MFT stamp and die sets.  I finally got to use them.  Yay!  The Aloha is actually a cut up Island Scrapbooking word.  I cut each letter separately and glued them down on top of the flowers.  The flowers were staggered and popped up with pop dots so that I could do a layered effect.  I think I pulled off the vintage look I was going for, but need to figure out something else instead of the white gesso if I'm going to try this one again.

Not only was Cyndi my swap partner, but she was my secret sister!  Here are the adorable altered clothes pins she made for me and some fun RAKs that came with the package...

Funny story, I saw these on IG and told her they were cute and lo and behold they were for me!  hahaha!  She is so darn creative, always altering things into something fun, cute and functional.  Right now these are on the fridge.  Thanks again Cyndi!!

If you're interested in being a part of a fun group of swap sisters just leave a message in the comments section and I'll forward it on to our organizer, Kathy Dinh.  Thanks for stopping by!!

PS - Did you join my 1000th post candy giveaway?  If not click HERE. 

LFF #80 - Is it a purse or frame??

Hello!!

How are you today?  I'm excited to share today's project with you.  It came about as I was working on an upcycle project.  I started to do this and ended up doing something else.  I kept this on the side to finish later and today I would like to share the completed project for today's Lilo's Fun Friday #80.  I'm really not sure what to call it, so for now you could call it a purse-frame.  You might recognize the two little girls sharing the spotlight here.  I guess I could have used any image, but I decided to go with my instincts and picked these two from Sister Stamps, Minako and Misaki.

The base was cut from chipboard, but can you guess what the stencil I used is?  If you guessed a fan you would be correct!  Yep I used a fan as the stencil for the base.  To cover the project I used this beautiful washi paper from Hanko Designs. As an embellishment a light pink daisy fabric ribbon from Daiso was glued on the edges and the handle which is how it turned in to a purse.  I used an old Kodak photo frame and covered it with a scrap of the same washi paper, then I adhered it with pop up dots to give it a lift.  I stamped "Happiness" in kanji in the center, but you can still slip a small (very small) photo inside from the top.

Here is a close up of the two little girls.  I chose to color them up with greens and pinks which makes them stand out from the softer pinks, whites and golds.  You'll also get to see how pretty the pagodas are as a nice addition to the background.  Love how it doesn't detract from the pretty washi paper; it sorta blends right in.

Minako

First up is Minako.  She's one of my favorites.  I guess because she looks so Japanese.  hehehe  I gave her a soft green colored kimono with pink flowers.  I used some older washi paper for the pagoda.  What a beautiful die from La-La Land Crafts.  Can't believe I waited so long to use it.  I guess I was waiting for the right project.  I added the cherry blossoms here, also from La-La Land Crafts.  The pearls in the center are actually dots I made with my pearl pen from Viva Decor.  If you look closely you'll see them all over the project, not just on the die cut flowers.

Misaki

Here's a close-up of the adorable, Misaki.  I colored her up in pretty medium greens and pinks.  I love how happy she looks.  Behind her is the gold pagoda with a couple of the cherry blossoms.  I love how each element goes so well together.  The only thing that is a little bit off is that one of the pagodas is a smidge off from the other one.  Next time I'll make sure to add the pagodas first so they line up evenly then add the frame.  Here's the back of the frame...

I found this quote on the internet and hand-wrote it.  I used that pretty cherry blossom stamp to add branches around the bottom of the frame.  Using the same colored ink pad I used a sponge to lightly add some distress to the edges of the frame.  A nice way to finish the back.

Well that was fun!  I love how this project which had no direction to begin with turned out.  Looks like I'm starting to find my groove again.  I've got a few more projects like this to share,  Each one was a lot of fun to make.  This particular project is heading to a new home.  I hope the one who gets it will enjoy it as much as I had making it.  Wishing you all a happy Aloha Friday and thanks so much for stopping by!!

Lilo

Who's surprising who? (LOL)

Good morning and Happy September!!

Yay! My very own Renate' Winter banner!! Isn't it kawaii?!! Si!  Had to add it to my b-day post! :)

It's my birthday today and there are a few sneaky fabulous ladies who are throwing me a surprise birthday blog hop on the Yumi & Fumi Handmade blog!  Yep, I accidentally found out about it when today's scheduled challenge post did not go live!  Needless to say I figured out why the post was not up and just how sneaky my teams and friends can be!  Gotta love them all, which I do!!  But I got the last laugh I think.  hehehe...  Popping in to say Thank you in advance for the wonderful surprise from all that participated in the hop.  You all touched my heart with your wonderful creations and definitely brightened up my day even more than it already will be.  So on my behalf...  Arigato!

Altered wooden picture frame featuring Fumi with Gift

While I was in Hawaii I spent some time at the local art supply store, Ben Franklin and a local scrapbook store, Island Scrapbooking. There I was able to pick up a few crafty items to play with from each store.  This awesome wooden frame was purchased at BF.  I also purchased the beautiful washi paper, mod podge, and mod podge spray and Bo Bunny pearls from there. The die cut sentiment and some of the small flowers were purchased from IS.  What a cute little store and the owner Michele is so awesome! If you ever get the chance and you're in Hilo, stop by her shop and check out all the cute items available for purchase.  You'll also see some very familiar projects inside.  Wish I could have spent a little more time to look around.  Yep after 4 trips I still think I could have looked around and found more fun stuff to buy! hahaha!

Anyhoos, I had so much fun altering this frame.  I actually went back to BF and bought a few more to bring back home.  I'll share the other two frames I made soon.  But thought I would get the jump on my team and let them know how much I appreciate their wonderful surprise with a surprise of my own! hahaha!!

Thank you ladies from the bottom of my heart!!  It's truly wonderful and thoughtful and I can't wait to hop around!  Please stop by the blog to check out the hop and please stop by everyone's blog and leave them some love, like I plan to later today.  *Who knows there might be a random give-a-way from me! :)

Fumi with Gift

To everyone celebrating today... Happy Birthday!!  May it be blessed and wonderful!

Hugs,

Leanne