My Mind's Eye Blog

May Flowers! Layout by Jana

Hi Everyone! Jana Eubank here. Spring is in full force where I live. And with it's rain showers, sunny mornings, blooming flowers, butterflies, and bees it has me itching to be outside with my hands in the dirt taking care of my flowerbeds. Everywhere the flowers are blooming and the world is beautiful! It has inspired me to play with floral patterns on my latest page.

 

Supplies:Find Your Wings and Fly-Up and Away: Be Awesome paper, Rainbow Harlequin paper, Krafty Floral paper, Mixed Media paper, Big Top paper, 12 x 12 Sticker Accessories, 12 x 12 Chipboard Accessories, Decorative Brads, Decorative Tape, Enamel Dots, Stamps;Misc: Brown distressing ink, Black stamp ink, Acrylic block, Vellum, Computer and printer, Olive spray ink, Tab punch, Scissors, Trimmer, Adhesive

 

The Krafty Floral paper from the Find Your Wings and Fly "Up and Away" Collection captivates me. I love the fresh colors and the subtle polka dot, chevron, sunburst, and harlequin patterns applied over the top of the flowers. I used this delicious paper as the starting point for this page.

 

Next, I arranged my photos in a band across the center. I had one photo that was close up of my daughter and two that were full-body shots. I separated these slightly to call more attention to the headshot photo and filled in the space with the large floral chipboard piece from the Chipboard Accessories sheet. How gorgeous are those flowers?!

 

One of my favorite things about this collection is all of the fun and fresh SHAPES found in the accessories and embellishments. Really! You gotta check out those photo corners, the chevron pieces, the wavy circles, the decorative brads, the banners, and the word tab stickers (not to mention the other pieces I haven't used yet: the bow, the pennants, the tickets, etc. Swoon!). I had to combine a little of everything on this page.

 

I love the stamps, too! I added a stamped phrase under my main photo and accented the journal block with a hot air balloon stamped on vellum. Enamel dots sprinkled across the page bring a happy vibe with their shiny surface.

 

Thanks for taking a peek at my May Flowers page. I hope it has inspired you to pull out those florals and have some happy fun!

MME+Teacher Appreciation Week with Jana

Happy Tuesday everyone! This is Jana and I'm here to share a creative and unique Teacher Appreciation Week gift idea with you!

I've researched online and have asked teachers I know what kinds of gifts they love to receive from their students and they all seem to say the same thing ... GIFT CARDS! But giving a gift card to someone can feel "last-minute" and impersonal. So why not package the gift card with a personal touch? Like this sweet school bus shaped gift box.

Supplies:Boy Crazy:Seeing Stars Paper, Plaid Paper, Point the Way Paper, Stitched Paper, 6 x 6 Paper Pad, Felt Stickers, Enamel Dots, Decorative Buttons;Find Your Wings and Fly -Sky's the Limit: Alpha/Word Stickers ;Kraft FunDay: "Happy Days" (Brights) Twine

I used the Boy Crazy collection along with my electronic cutting machine and an ice cream truck cut file by SVGCuts.com to create this fun box. The characters from the felt stickers make perfect passengers! And the Decorative Buttons are the perfect accents! I even created a flip-out stop sign for the side of the bus to keep the boarding riders safe and sound. Letter stickers from the Find Your Wings and Fly Collection  label the bus with the teacher's name.

 

When the back of the box is opened a few handfuls of the teacher's favorite candy come spilling out along with a library card pocket containing a gift card to her favorite restaurant.

 

The library pocket and apple were also cut with my electronic die cut machine. I gave the apple a little texture with an embossing folder. Another button from the Boy Crazy collection and some twine from the Kraft FunDay collection add some fun (and a little visual interest) to the pocket. The candies get dressed up patterned paper bands using the Boy Crazy 6 x 6 papers!

 

The mini banner pieces from the Boy Crazy Decorative Buttons adorn the other side of the bus, and the Enamel Dots make the most perfect lights and wheel accents!

 

It's a colorful and fun way to let your child's teacher know how much you appreciate them! Thanks so much for stopping by today!

 

 

Pinspiration Friday

Happy Friday! We are so glad you stopped by today, it's Pinspiration Friday! Every day, we scour the Internet for inspiring MME projects. We find your work on your blogs, through our FB page,and in online galleries. We pin the ones that inspire us most!

Then once a month we challenge our designers to use one of your creations as inspiration for a layout or card.

This month Jana and Tamara are joining us. Here's what they came up with. Enjoy and have a lovely, creative weekend!

 

 

Inspiration Piece: Brook Stewart

 

 

Jana's version:

 

Supplies:Collectable-Notable :Cute Petite paper, Silly Jolly paper, Memo Reminder paper, Memo Layered Stickers, Love This Journal Card, Wonder Decorative Brads, Wonder Decorative Buttons, Cute Decorative Stickers, Cute Enamel Dots, Notable Decorative Tape;Lost & Found 3- Oliver:Yellow Honey paper;Kraft FunDay-Happy Days: Twine

 

Jana says:I fell in love with Brook's style the minute I saw this page. I love the placement of everything and how she chose colors that complimented the softness of her photos. I followed Brook's lead when selecting patterns for my page, but chose to go with a brighter color palette to coordinate with the colors of the butterfly's wings in my photos.

 

Like Brook, I used a tone-on-tone floral for the page base and I chose a neutral graphic paper for the background of the design. I really liked how Brook used a 6 x 6 sheet of paper to anchor her photos. The bright pattern peeking out from the left and right sides of the photos was the perfect splash of fun. Instead of graphic chevrons, I chose to go with flowers to stay with the "nature" theme of my page topic.

 

I love the way Brook sprinkled wood hearts and enamel dots around her page. I created my own version with stickers, layered stickers, chipboard and enamel dots.

 

I added a journal block to the right side of my page design like Brook did. However, my journal block is vertical instead of horizontal, so I decided to add a bit more embellishing around my journal block. I used the Collectable Notable Decorative Brads and Buttons along with more enamel dots. FUN!

 

Thanks for inspiring me, Brook! I had so much fun!

 

 

Inspiration Piece: Katarina Damm-Blomberg

Tamara's Version:

 

Supplies: Find Your Wings and Fly -"Up and Away": Krafty Floral patterned paper, Admit One patterned paper (blue tickets), 6x6 pad (pink and cream papers), layered stickers, chipboard, stickers, enamel dots, brads, decorative, tape, black, green and blue letter stickers: Misc: White cardstock, black thread, ink, and pen.

 

Tamara says:

I was inspired by Katarina's fabulous layout pinned on the MME Pinterest board.  I really liked the collage of elements and papers layered with her photos.  The title and the little cluster along the right side drew your eye across the page.  She was generous to grant me permission to use her fabulous page as inspiration.

I am in LOVE with Rhonna Farrer's new "Find Your Wings and Fly collections.  The colors and spirit of her "Up and Away" line worked perfectly with these photos of my daughter.I snapped these before school five years ago after I styled her hair with an idea she found online.  My, how she has changed - she is 16 now and no longer asks me to do her hair (unless it is for Prom). 

I placed chipboard and layered stickers along the left side of my page.  I cut the blue ticket labels out of paper.

The "Bloom Where You Are Planted" scalloped layered sticker was the perfect title (since she was standing in front of our flower beds) and anchored my page. The spray of enamel dots add whimsy and movement.

For my second journaling spot, I used an array of the wonderful new letter and word stickers - there are 6 sheets of yummy colors in the set! As a finishing touch I layered decorative tapes, the "Smile" brad, and green enamel dots along the right side of my layout.

Thank you so much for the inspiration, Katarina!

Felt Stickers

Happy Thursday, MME fans!

Today we want to spotlight one of our favorite embellishments...felt stickers! These stickers are the perfect way to easily add a touch of whimsy to your layout or project.

They are fun, happy, bright, and playful. Who doesn't want more of that in their world?

I challenged Jana and Danni to share their ideas using these darling stickers. Here's what they came up with!

 

Be Happy by Jana Eubank

Supplies:My Girl :Playful paper, Rainbow paper, Pinwheel paper, Sweet Girl paper, Bouquet paper, Genuine paper, Felt Stickers, Layered Stickers, 12 x 12 Stickers, Decorative Brads, Enamel Dots

Other: Yellow cardstock, Tab punch, Scallop border punch, Ink, Adhesive, Foam squares, Trimmer

Jana says:I adore the felt stickers from the My Girl and Boy Crazy collections. I love the multiple layers in bright colors. Some of the layers even have stitching on them, which really adds to their cozy, handmade feel. When I look at them, they remind me of the cute, whimsical designs that are stitched on my young daughter's clothing (something I look to often for inspiration). I knew they would be a perfect accent on this layout about my daughter's birthday.

I added some of the enamel dots to the flowers, ice cream cone, and butterfly wings. I love the contrast of the shiny enamel dot with the fuzzy felt. So fun!

 

 

Robot Door Hanger by Danni Reid

Supplies:Boy Crazy:Plaid Paper, Geared Up, Felt Stickers, Decorative brads, tape, layered sticker, enamel dots,Silhouette Cameo, hole punch

When I first saw these felt stickers, I knew I wanted to create a door hanger for my youngest son's room.  These cute robots, cars and stars just needed to be displayed.  He loves fun things from my scrap booking supplies, from lunch notes, to bookmarks, to door hangers, to folder inserts, he loves them (he's still young enough to enjoy those things, yay).

I cut the door hanger using my Silhouette Cameo and then cut a fun block of arrows and backed it with chevron paper.  I loved layering the hanger with the papers, felt stickers, tapes and brads. 

I used hot glue in a "glob" and pressed it up a little to angle the head so the robot is looking at "you".  I thought it would be fun to add the layered sticker "genuine boy" to his hand, a couple of brads to the felt sticker and a couple of enamel dots to that cute robot tummy.

 

 

Eye Love You by Danni Reid

Supplies:Boy Crazy:Plaid, Point the Way, Stitched and Seeing Stars paper, Felt stickers, decorative brads, enamel dots;Misc:heart punch, white cardstock, machine stitching, Tim Holtz mini attacherIf you do not have a Silhouette Cameo, you can use a door hanger template online.  Here's one of several free printable templates online: Door Hanger Template

Danni says: I decided it would be fun to use this fun one-eyed monster to create a fun card for my youngest, one to slip into his lunchbox.  I thought it would be fun to create a sentiment that played on the "eye" in the monster.

How darling and creative are these ideas??? Have you used our felt stickers in your crafting? If so, we'd love to see! Link in the comments or on our FB page.

Happy crafting!

Easter Bunny Treat Bags with Jana

Good morning everyone! This is Jana and I'm here to share a fun Easter decor idea.

My family usually sets our Easter dinner table with crisp white linens, porcelain china, and shiny silverware. I love the clean and bright look, but yearn to add color and personalization to each place setting.

The Collectable Memorable Collection is the perfect way to bring the colors of Spring to your table with these darling Easter Bunny Treat Bags!

Supplies:Collectable-Memorable: Details patterned paper, Gathering patterned paper, Together patterned paper, Record patterned paper,enamel dots;Winter Wonderland :twine

 

 These were really easy and quick to put together with the help of my electronic die cutting machine! You can find the free cut file HERE.

I chose several soft patterns from the Collectable Memorable collection and then used the paisley printed side of the Details paper for the pink bunny details.

 

For the eyes, I used a 1/4" hole punch to cut gray cardstock circles. Next, I adhered Memorable enamel dots to the cardstock circles for the pupils of the bunny's eyes. I love the way the enamel dots have shine to them ... they add a bit of twinkle that gives each bunny personality.

For the mouth, I simply drew it on by hand used a black journaling pen. The bunnies' whiskers were stitched on with white embroidery floss. The flap stays closed with a hook and loop sticker dot.

You can make your bunny a girl by adding a blue Winter Wonderland twine bow to one of the ears. Or make him a boy bunny by adding a twine bow tie around his neck.

Fill your bunny with treats and a special note, sprinkle a few jelly beans at his feet, and you have a darling addition for each place setting at your Easter dinner table.

 

Happy Spring!

Hi, Everyone! It's Jana Eubank.

Do you celebrate the "wearin' o' the green" at your house? I must say, you just gotta love a holiday that celebrates the color green ... especially after a drab winter, right?! :) I'm ready to start seeing the color green emerge from beneath the snow and appear on the branches of the trees in my yard. In a way, it's kind of the first celebration of Spring!

My kids love to dress up in green for St. Patrick's Day and always beg me to paint their hair with green hairspray. It's a fun tradition and I was excited that I snapped a few shots of them with their silly green hair last year to put in our family scrapbook.

 

Supplies: Collectable-Memorable : Gathering Paper, Together Paper, Details Paper, Adventure Paper, 6x6 Paper Pad, "Note" Journal Card, Label Stickers, Chipboard, Decorative Brads, Decorative Buttons, Enamel Dots;Winter Wonderland: twine;Misc:cardstock (cream, green, light green, hot pink), Electronic Die Cutting Machine, Butterfly Punch, Swiss Dots Embossing Folder, Embossing Machine, Paper Piercer, Trimmer, Scissors, Hole Punch, Adhesive, Foam Dots

 

I decided to use the Collectable Memorable collection for this page. I LOVE its soft colors.

It's the perfect palette for scrapping springtime memories, but has enough saturation to keep my photos from looking too pale or washed out.

I began by selecting a green patterned paper as the base of my layout. I chose to use the herringbone patterned side of the Gathering paper. I cut it to 11" square and added it to a green cardstock base.  Next, I added strips of the striped Together Paper across the top and bottom. I figured out my photo placement and chose two more patterns that complimented the green.

I used my electronic die cutting machine to cut out three layers of my title. I adhered two of them together, offsetting one slightly to give it a shadow effect.

For the third layer, I used my scissors to snip out the word "Lucky." I embossed it and then adhered that on top. I added a decorative brad to the exclamation poing and created a couple of cute butterflies punched from the 6x6 pad.

The smaller scale patterns are perfect for using with punches! I used the smallest enamel dots for the bodies of the butterflies. I gussied up the journal block with a die cut shamrock accented with a date label sticker and decorative brad.

 

I like to vary the types of materials on my pages and so far I had paper, and metal (with the decorative brads). I needed some softness, so I added a bit of blue twine from the Winter Wonderland collection .

Finally, I finished off the bottom right corner of my page by adding more punched butterflies, a label sticker, and a die cut shamrock anchored on a Collectable chipboard circle, accented with a decorative brad. I love the little phrases on the stickers, They are so happy and add a lot of flair to my page!

 

I hope you have some fun plans to celebrate St. Patrick's Day this weekend! Be sure to wear your green so you don't get pinched! ;)

 

Happy Scrapping!

 

Jana Shares Everyday Uses for Decorative Tape

Hello! It's Jana Eubank. I hope you are enjoying all the great ideas for using decorative tape here on the My Mind's Eye Blog this week. I feel inspired to pull out my tape stash and get tearing! Today, I wanted to share a few everyday uses for decorative tape that you may not have thought of before. There really are so many uses for the tapes, which makes them a versatile supply to have in your stash! I especially like the splash of fun color they give everyday items around my house. Take a look!

 

DRESS UP MECHANICAL PENCILS

 

At the beginning of the school year, I bought each of my kids a large pack of mechanical pencils. The barrel of the pencils are white ... which makes them the perfect canvas for some decorative tape fun. Check out the pencils now!

 

Before: Plain Jane Pencils

 

 After: Happy, Colorful Pencils! Yay!

 

 

ADD COLORFUL LABELS TO YOUR STORAGE CONTAINERS

 

I love using containers to organize my scrapbook supplies. But as my stash grows and changes, I often switch around the contents to adapt to my different needs. I needed a way quick and easy way to label my containers that wouldn't take a lot of time or be too permanent. Decorative tape to the rescue! The low tack adhesive on the tapes make them ideal for this purpose. Here is what you will need: your favorite My Mind's Eye decorative tapes, a piece of cardstock, a computer & printer, and a permanent marker.

 

First, type the words that you would like on your labels in a clear, easy-to-read font. Print the words onto a sheet of cardstock.

 

Apply decorative tape over the words, centering the words top to bottom. This is easy to do because of the tape's semi-transparent quality. Use a black permanent marker to trace the words onto the decorative tape.

 

Finally, peel the tape off the paper and apply to your storage containers. Voilaaaa! Easy and FAST! ... and CUTE to boot!

 

 

USE DECORATIVE TAPE TO REINFORCE 3-HOLE PUNCHED PAPERS

 

Recently, I created a study binder to use at church. I created a divider for each monthly topic using cardstock and my Silhouette Electronic Cutting Machine. The dividers are functional, but I know that over time the holes on each divider will begin to wear down and possibly tear. I needed a way to reinforce the holes, so I again pulled out my decorative tapes.

 

I ran a length of tape down both sides of the punched holes and then used my craft knife to carefully trim the excess from the holes. I love the fun punch of pattern the tapes add to my study book! Do I dare say that the tape makes it more fun to study? :)

 

 

DECORATIVE TAPE STORAGE

 

While I love my decorative tapes, I needed a good way to store them. Previously, they were all tossed in a box together, but I had to dig through the box and I couldn't easily find the colors or patterns I needed. Here is a great way to store all of your decorative tapes using an upcycled cardboard, aluminum foil or wax paper container.

 

First, cut a wood dowel a little larger than the width of your container. Next, use white gesso to paint the box and the dowel. Using a punched circle as a template (find a size that is slightly larger than your dowel), trace the circle onto each end of the box. Use a craft knife to cut out the holes.

 

If desired, use patterned paper to line the inside of the box. Decorate the outside of your box. I used decorative tapes and a label that would indicate the colors inside the box.

 

Next, add your rolls of tape to the box, and insert the dowel through the center of the box, threading the tapes on the dowel as you go. The box stays closed with the help of a Sticky Back Velcro dot.

 

I love my box! My tapes are now stored neatly in my desk drawer by color and the serrated edge of the box makes using the tapes a breeze!

 

Thanks for letting me share these ideas with you today! I hope you found some useful ways to use decorative tapes.

 

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Using Clusters to Lead the Eye

Hello everyone! This is Jana!

Did you know that one of the best ways to lead a viewer's eye around your scrapbook page is by using clusters? Clusters provide interesting spots for the eye to rest and absorb your layout in nice "bite-size" pieces. I especially love building clusters with all of the wonderful, dimensional embellishments that coordinate with the My Mind's Eye collections.
 


 
I knew was going to have one photo, so that allowed me the opportunity to have a little fun with the remaining space on the page. First, I created a background for my photo by layering together several random blocks of 6x6 papers. There is no rhyme or reason to it, infact I sliced some of the corners off of a few blocks just for fun!
 
I decided that I wanted the page title towards the top. I combined the Happy Days layered sticker with the "Handsome" Title Card and then built a cluster around that with several decorative brads and "The Best Day" chip sticker from the decorative buttons.
 


 
The point of the title card naturally leads the eye down the page, so I knew I would place part of my design in the lower left corner. This is where the journaling block ended up. I used another cluster of embellishments on the bottom of the journal card to lead the eye towards the right. The arrows from the decorative stickers were a great choice and calls attention to the photos perfectly. A few more brads and a decorative button add a bit of interest.
 


 
I only had one image for this page, but the single photo felt out of balance. To remedy this, I added the exact same photo next to it printed in a slightly smaller size. This "echo" effect strengthens the page subject through repetition.
 
Finally, I didn't want the eye to stop abruptly at the photo. I stamped the trio of arrows from the "Today" Decorative Stamps pointing back towards the center of the page (I also stamped the same image at the top of the page by the title block) and added a cluster of layered stickers and more decorative brads to the top right corner of the photos. This casually circles the eye back to the title of the page and just rounds out the page.
 

Next time you build your page, try using clusters of embellishments to lead the viewer through your page.
 
Thanks for stopping by today!
 

SUPPLIES: Collectable-Remarkable: 'Beautiful' Delightful patterned paper,'Authentic' Genuine patterned paper, 6 x 6 Paper Pad,'Handsome' title tard,'Authentic' journal card,layered stickers,decorative brads, decorative buttons,decorative stickers,label stickers,enamel dots;Collectable-Unforgettable:'Today' decorative stamps;Misc:cardstock,circle punch,brown distressing innk,black stamping ink,white spray ink, black journaling pen,scissors,trimmer,adhesives

XOXO by Jana

Hello everyone! This is Jana and I'm here with a fun Valentine's Day layout!

 

Every Valentine's Day my parents drop by with a sack full of goodies for my kids. It's fun to capture the family together with all of the craziness and fun of the kids opening their gifts.

These kinds of pictures can be difficult to scrapbook, however, because of how busy the photos tend to be with many people, colors, and patterns.

One way to address these types of pictures is by placing them on a solid cardstock background and then using only a few slivers of patterned paper as accents. In this case, the photos can actually be considered a "patterned paper".

The supporting patterns should be used sparingly. You can see on the page below that I have incorporated several patterns, but only in small strips or as a border around the page. The photos are still the main "pattern" of my page

Supplies:Lucky in Love: Chevron patterned paper, Roses are Red patterned paper, Floral Stripes patterned paper, Heart Burst patterned paper, 12 x 12 Stickers; Red & Turquoise Decorative Tapes 

 

close up of left page:

 

close up of right page:

I began my page with two sheets of white cardstock. I spruced it up a little by spritzing the background with teal mist. Next, I arranged the photos on my page, matting a few of them with the blue tone-on-tone pattern side of the Chevron paper.

I wanted the smaller photos to be anchored on a common horizontal line, so I ran a length of turquoise decorative tape across each page. I layered the red heart strip from the Roses are Red paper on top of the tape.

Next, I used more turquoise decorative tape underneath my photo arrangement, along with 0.5" strips of the Floral Stripes paper. I handcut the pink lace borders from the Roses are Red paper and added that along the bottom.

Now it's time to add page accents! The 12 x 12 sticker sheet was perfect for this. I'm a very visual person and I like to move elements around the page several times before deciding on their placement.

With stickers, this can be tricky to do without tearing the paper underneath. My solution? I keep a small dish of cornstarch on my desk that I apply to the back of the stickers so that they are no longer tacky.

Now I can move them around and even add foam squares to the back for dimension.

 

 

Thanks for coming by today! Happy Valentine's Day Eve!

 

 

Valentine's Day Frame by Jana

Hello everyone! Jana here today. Valentine's Day is such a beautiful holiday. It's a time to express your love to those who are closest to you. I like to sprinkle soft, romantic touches around our home to remind my family how much I love them.

However, I needed something to brighten up our kitchen counter. Something romantic, soft and beautiful. That's where the My Mind's Eye Lost & Found 3 Ruby collection came into play.

 

Supplies:Lost & Found 3-Ruby:Red Floral patterned paper,Pink Lace pattered paper,Medallion patterned paper,enamel dots

 

I found an abandoned white frame in our closet and decided to create a dimensional art piece. I used my electronic die cutting machine to cut out the graduated hearts in different Ruby papers.

The hardest part was deciding which of the beautiful patterns I was going to use! I stacked the hearts together and then used my sewing machine to zig zag stitch down the center. Next, I folded up the layers of the hearts and used pop dots as spacers in between each layer.

 

I created a folded banner and added a calligraphy sentiment (also cut out with my die cutting machine). I used pop dots to attach the banner to the frame.

Finally, I used the enamel dots in a few spots to look like paint droplets. I love how this came together! Easy and beautiful. And definitely something that can be replicated for any type of holiday.

 

Thanks for coming by today!