My Mind's Eye Blog

New Collection Reveal- Kate & Co.

Welcome, welcome, WELCOME MME fans! We have a very exciting couple of days planned for you!

Today starts our new mid-release collection sneak peeks. Today and tomorrow we will be sharing our two new lines with you and we couldn't be more excited.

Today we want to introduce you to Kate and Co.

Kate and Co. is just flat out happy. It is fresh, fun, and screams "SPRING"!

There are two color schemes in this collection and we are starting with Cambridge Court.

Comprised of shades of mint green, aqua blue, pink, yellow, gray, and black...this color scheme will make even the rainiest days sunny and bright.

You will see all sorts of chic and classic motifs here including florals, herringbone, dots, chevrons,medallions, zig zags and stripes.

Note: The digital images in these posts are not portraying the colors quite right. Please look at the actual product photographs below the digital images to see true color representation.

Kate and Co- Cambridge Court consists of twelve double-sided 12x12 patterned papers:

 as well as a 6x6 pad, layered stickers, enamel dots, chipboard, stamps, brads, buttons, enamel dots, decorative tape, and a collection pack:

Here are some "in real life" shots. The digital images don't do the real thing justice. Here are how the beautiful colors look in person.

The second color scheme in Kate and Co. is Oxford Lane.

Made up of navy, green, yellow, and white....this color scheme is pure preppy deliciousness.

Timeless and trendy all rolled into one, Oxford Lane is sure to be an instant classic.

Here are the twelve double-sided 12x12 papers:

 

and the embellishments. Yes, those are WHITE enamel dots!

And some detailed "real life" shots. These colors are delicious. The digital images don't show the greens correctly so make sure to take a look at the photographs:

So there you have it. Cambridge Court and Oxford Lane from the new Kate&Co. collection.

What do you think? Do either of these color schemes float your boat? Let us know in the comments.

One lucky reader will win the color scheme of their choice. Leave a comment here by next Friday (April 12) to be entered.

Good luck!!

See you tomorrow with our second new collection reveal!

Mix and Match with Karen- April Edition

Hi everyone!

This is Karen and I am delighted to start a new regular column this month. I know I am not alone in hoarding lots and lots of scrapbook supplies. I also know I am not alone in being sad when I look at some of the "older" lines that I still love but don't get to use as much because there's so much new stuff that's waiting for me.

I also sometimes feel guilty buying new things when I know I still have plenty of the older lines. But one of the things I love love love about My Mind's Eye is that so many of their lines match perfectly. The colors always line up just right and I can mix and match lines that are three years old with ones from six months ago and ones that just released. Everything simply works together.

This means my older lines don't have to sit in the closet and gather dust. It also means I can buy a piece from a new line that I love and know that it will work with what I already have on hand. It means I can
just mix and match!

That's where the idea of this column was born. Each month, I'll make layouts that mix and match some of the older lines with the new ones so you can see examples of how they can easily work together. My goal is to encourage you to dip into your stash and pull out those old favorites and create your own ways to mix and match the lines!

With that, here's what I did this month. One of my all-time favorite older lines is Fine and Dandy so I pulled out that line, and The Sweetest Thing and my two recent favorites: Collectible and My Girl & Boy Crazy lines. I love all the bright and happy colors in these lines and I wanted to see if I could use them together to create a happy layout.

I wanted to challenge myself to do one more thing this time around which was to just put elements of my page down without much planning or thinking. I mean actually glue them down and then work with it as it
evolves instead of laying things down carefully, arranging and rearranging etc. I wanted to see if I could just have the layout evolve naturally.

Since I like my backgrounds white, I picked one of my other favorite lines: Follow Your Heart  where the Be Happy, Be Joyful paper has the perfect white back with subtle pink grid lines.

I picked recent photos of my husband and kids that I adore and just laid them on the page about three quarters down the page:



The next thing that caught my attention was the "Play" chipboard sticker from the My Girl line so I put that down and then added the stickers that spelled p-l-a-y from the same line. Going back to my Fine and Dandy line, I picked the chipboard sticker that said "you are one in a million" which matched the color of the background of the "l" in the p-l-a-y perfectly. I then added some of the little brown alphas from the Fine and Dandy line to spell out more of the title. I also interwove the sticker words from The Sweetest Thing and Collectible lines. I added the banners from the Fine and Dandy line to the right edge and my page looked something like this:



I then just had fun. I picked random elements from the lines I already had out and added them in different spots. I wanted to make one of my banners three-dimensional so I picked the banner chipboard from the My Girl line and added it on top of the Fine and Dandy ones I'd put on the right side:



I picked some of the papers and stickers from The Sweetest Thing and punched them with edge punches and put them around my photos and then added more layers using chipboards and stickers from Boy Crazy and My Girl:

and then I used all the dot enamels from whatever line I wanted to just embellish more and more and add pops of color:



I really tried to keep the whole process fluid and fun for myself. I loved how colorful the final page looked. So much so that I decided to do something I've never done before: I used four different threads when I stitched on my page. I made three different colored borders and stitched through my elements with random colors to make it even more colorful and fun.

And here's what my final page looks like:



I hope you can see all the fun I had building this one layout and even more significantly, can you see how all the five lines I used work seamlessly together even though some of them are brand new, others a
year old and even others more than a few years old. This is the magic of My Mind's Eye and how they create products that are timeless and can easily be integrated together.

If you have pages that mix and match old and new lines, I hope you leave a comment so I can see them, too! And if you haven't tried putting a layout together without overthinking it, I encourage you to take the
leap now. Just glue stuff down and work around it. You might be amazed at the wonderful results you get!

Until next month, thank you for letting me share my page and have fun mixing and matching!

Page Maps Sketch Contest!

Good morning MME fans! We have a fun collaboration to share with you today. :)

We are joining up with the Page Maps team to sponsor a fun sketch contest. The prize is the My Girl Collection!

Here is the sketch for the contest:

To enter, create a layout based on this sketch, in any size, any orientation, any way you want to interpret it and using any products you would like. Post a comment on this thread with a link to your entry. The contest starts today and ends at midnight, Sunday, April 21, 2013 (MST). This contest is open to everyone, everywhere! :)

GO CHECK IT OUT HERE!

Here are the awesome layouts the MME team came up with. (click on individual images to see details)

Tina Walker (left), Stephanie Howell (right)

Jana Eubank

Shelly Jaquet

Monika Wright

 

Tamara Jensen

Ronda Palazzari

Amber Packer

 

We hope lots of you will head on over to the Page Maps blog and participate in this awesome challenge.

See you there!!

April Challenge- April Fools!

We weren't planning on doing a regular April challenge this month, but we changed our minds at the last moment.

No joke!

What's the challenge topic, you might ast?

April Fools!

Make a project sharing your sense of humor. It can be a joke, a silly topic, or a funny story. Here's what clever Danni came up with for the challenge.

Make sure to check the bottom of the post for 2 links to printables and a step by step tutorial!

Supplies:Lost and Found 3:Ruby -Postcard patterned paper,Medallion patterned paper,Honeycomb patterned paper,12 x 12 chipboard, stickers ;Boy Crazy:enamel dots ;Misc: Silhouette Cameo, twine, machine stitching

 

 Danni says:

April Fools Day is actually my maternal grandmother's birthday, so it's fun for us to create cards to make her smile and laugh out loud. Today I thought I would share this year's card with you.

I adhered my faux $20 bill to the inside flap, when the recipient (my grandmother) opens it up, trying to remove the $20 bill, they will see the 20 bucks (of the deer persuasion) instead......April Fools (smile)!!!

For those of you who do not have a Cameo, I've added some printables for you to create your own card with your MME supplies.

For the money printable CLICK HERE
For the printable bucks CLICK HERE

And if you do own a Cameo, here is a quick tutorial:

Thank you for popping in, hopefully we've put a smile on your face today!!!

 

Here are the rules.

1. You can submit a layout,card,album,altered item,etc.

2. The project must consist of mainly MME. It must "look" like a MME layout. :) It must fit the theme.

3. The project must be created new for this challenge. You may only submit one project.

4. Upload the project to the InLinkz link tool at the end of this post by the end of the day on Tuesday, April 16

5. A random winner will be chosen and announced with the second April challenge on April 17. The prize is any MME collection- the choice is yours.

GO FOR IT! We can't wait to see what you come up with. Happy April Fools!

 

From All of Us at MME

Happy Easter to you and yours!

We are so happy to have all of you as our friends, customers, and fans. You are all the absolute best!

Have a fabulous day. :)

by Danni Reid

Supplies:Collectable:'Note' Details, 'Hello' Cordial, 'I'm With' Together, and 'Journey' Journal patterned papers,decorative brads;Misc:Martha Stewart bunny and heart punch, Bazzill cardstock, machine stitching

Easter Traditions with Suzanne

Happy Good Friday! Suzanne with you here today with an Easter page just in time for this weekend celebration. Every year I use the same Easter baskets that my kids received on their very first Easter. I hope to continue this tradition until they decide they are too old for baskets. Hopefully, this will not happen anytime soon!

Supplies: Collectable-Unforgettable:'You Are' Charm patterned paper,'Today' Remember patterned paper,'You Are' Pleasant patterned paper,'Happiness" Delight patterned paper,'Today' Moment patterned paper, 'Firsts' New patterned paper, 'Today'stamps, 6x6 paper pad,journal card, enamel dots, die cuts, layered stickers,decorative buttons,decorative brads,chipboard stickers

I fill their baskets with a new swimsuit, gift cards, small toys and, of course, chocolate. One item that my kids can always count on is a big chocolate bunny. I always try to find the biggest one so it is the first thing that they see when they come down to see what the Easter Bunny has left for them.

I was lucky to capture a few photos of my daughter with her chocolate bunny. For this page I turned to the Collectable Unforgettable collection to capture this sweet moment. I first chose the You Are Charm paper because of the various patterns and colors found on the honeycomb paper. This was the inspiration for my page.

Normally, I feel that a single photo can effectively tell my story. This time I stepped out of my comfort zone and used three photos on my page. I tend to go with a 5x7 print, but this time went a bit bigger. I love this photo of my little girl, and I really wanted it to be the focal point of the page. After all, it is about her, and the tradition of the chocolate bunny. I tucked in two smaller photos of her on the left side of the page, right above the start of the honeycomb strip. I embellished with a photo corner, and a small chipboard banner

I cut a 3x12 inch strip and then randomly cut along the honeycombs. I simply cut until I had two separate strips of this paper to use along the bottom and top of the page. I used the Happiness Delight paper because of the brown pattern and used this as the base of my page. I wanted to add an extra layer, so I tucked in a neutral cardstock on top.

Along the bottom of the page, I used the stripe underneath the honeycomb paper, so it could peek through. I love patterned paper, and seem to have a difficult time deciding which papers use. On the top of the page, you will also see another pattern...this time the floral print to add a girly touch! 

I knew exactly what my title would be when I saw the "best" ribbon layered sticker. I added extra layers underneath by using a large white doily, a 3 inch blue circle, and a mini white doily. I positioned this embellishment almost in the center of the page and finished with random letters I had in my stash to spell out the rest of my title. I embellished these letters with the fun enamel dots, another chipboard banner, and a heart brad found in the Unforgettable decorative brad package.When my page needs extra pizazz I always turn to the dots! They come in a variety of sizes and are a quick and fun way to add an extra something in seconds!

Last,but not least, I added more layers onto my page by tucking in a journal card and a die cut title. I ran the journal card through my printer to add a bit of journaling. I randomly stamped some arrows using brown ink.

I'm hoping this page gives you a bit of inspiration as you begin your weekend! Wishing you and yours a wonderful Easter celebration. My holiday begins today, as I fill my children's baskets with the traditional Easter chocolate bunny!

Easter Cards by Danni

Good morning!  Danni here.

We are very excited in this household for Easter, we love it here, it's our favorite holiday during the year.  We love the meaning, the color, the eggs, the cute bunnies and YES the chocolate!  Oh how we love the chocolate, ok I do, there I confessed it...smile.

I was excited for this particular post because of the amazing inspiration I found in our PINS on Pinterest.  I chose Lisa Wilkinson's Card and created three cards with the new My Girl line.  I loved how these cards turned out, they were playful, fun and interactive. 

It was THEN that I decided that my Easter cards would also be inspired by this amazing card because I had some ideas in-mind for Easter cards from this inspiration.

On my first card, I chose to use all the most fun, girly patterns in the My Girl line and cute bunnies with fun clouds filled with sequins. 

I love how the pocket of sequins on Lisa's card, just make you feel happy and I thought it would be fun to create a colorful, fun Easter card also with sequins.  Instead of filling an entire pocket of the sequins, I decided it would be a lot of fun to use dies to cut clouds and fill them up.



On my second card, I decided to make a more boyish card using the My Girl line also.  I have a house full of boys and only one girl, so I know the need for more boyish cards in all sorts.  I decided to fill the grass with "Easter eggs" (sequins) and use brown bunnies instead of the white "fluffy" ones.  I love how this card feels more boyish using plaid patterns instead of the floral patterned papers and some additional blue card stock.

Do you think you might give a die cut images a try for Easter?  We would love to see it if you do, please link us up in the comments section.

We hope you have the best Easter with your friends, family and loved ones!

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!

Mini Albums with Monika...Ephemera+Scraps=One Perfect Mini

This has been the coldest Spring I can remember in years and years, we even had snow on Monday, but that hasn't stopped me from dreaming about warmer weather and being outdoors with my girls. Hello friends, it's time again for Mini Albums with Monika and today we're going to make our very own mini album together. 

Supplies:Collectable-Notable: "Silly" Cheery paper;Collectable-Unforgettable: "Story" Label Stickers and "Today" Decorative Stamps;Collectable-Memorable: "Perfect" Tiny Word Stickers, My Girl: "Genuine" paper, Decorative Buttons, Decorative Brads, Decorative Tape, Enamel Dots;Other: seam binding, adhesive, Fiskars 3/16" hole punch, Stampin' Up! ink

And what's great about this album is that you can easily recreate the same look with either the My Girl or Boy Crazy collections that we're all in love with. Each of the collections have the same designs, just in different color ways and are interchangeable with one another if you happen to have one spunky little girl that loves blue more than pink, like I do.

let's get started

Hopefully this works!

There's a download with a supply list and cutting tutorial at the end of the post for you, so I'll just share photos with you here. If you have any questions about anything at all, leave them in the comments and I'll answer them for you there.

journaling cards + decorative brads

You've created your pages and tags, so here's where the real fun begins. I'm using the right page for photos and the left side holds the pocket we made with our journaling cards. I trimmed the photo somewhat like an elongated Polaroid and added a label sticker and chipboard element to that wide white strip. 

For the tag, after adhering the pattern paper tab, I popped a decorative brad on top, stamped my sentiment and then my journaling beneath a strip of decorative tape.

Here, you can see how I added the border strip to the pocket.

tiny word stickers

That's right, I used a whole slew of tiny word stickers to jump start my journaling! Then, just so she knows how perfect we know she is, I added more tiny word stickers to the right page. Notice that on this page, I'm showing that you don't have to use journaling cards for the pocket. Use the same concept, outlined in the tutorial download, with pattern paper.

DESIGN TIP  |  I printed this "photo strip" on one 4x6 photo and then trimmed the two rows and added them as one strip. I was kinda too lazy to pull out the 8x10 paper, so I cheated.

stamps + buttons

I am wild about bracket-shaped anything and there just happens to be a perfectly delightful stamp in the Collectable Unforgettable "Today" set...perfect for so much, but especially for journaling! Because I used a muted filter on my photo, I felt the right side needed fun pops of color, which was accomplished with more decorative tape, buttons and an enamel dot. 

felt stickers

I always decorate the cover last, just in case I change my focus along the way while I'm creating the inside pages. I create without a plan, a sketch or any preconceived ideas, I just pull stuff out and let 'er rip.

Download your supply list and dimensions,etc.  HERE.

and photo tutorial HERE (part one)

and HERE (part two).

I'm happy to answer any questions you may have, just leave a comment and I'll reply there.

Note to Spring...where are you?

Mixed Media with Karen- March Edition

Hi everyone. Karen here. I am back for another dose of Mixed Media with Karen. Last month, I took the Brave Girls Art Class - Wings session and one of the things Melody taught everyone was how to draw and collage butterflies.

I thought it was super-fun and since I adore butterflies, I wanted to give it a try and see what I could create with my beautiful My Mind's Eye papers.

The first thing I did was to draw the skeleton of my butterfly. Since I knew I was going to add my gratitude, I decided to make my butterfly big and have half of it off the page.


Then, using those lines as my guide, I cut pieces of paper and layered them on there to create the shape of the butterfly. I cut off flowers, too. Just tried not to think too hard and play.


Once I was all done, I glued everything down.


The next thing I did was to add some dots and small touches with paint. I also added a thin layer of blue paint to the background.

My next step after that was pretty drastic.

At least, for me it was. I took some brown paint and used it to distress my butterfly. I also used it on the background and then rubbed a lot of it (and the blue paint) off the background with baby wipes. I also added some twine for the antennae. I ended up with this:

I did a few more rounds, a few more layers, some more distressing, and a border. And, of course, added my words. My final page looks like this:


and here are a few closeups:


The page I ended up with is very atypical for me. I generally like to go with bold, happy colors and I don't distress. But, to me, the whole point of regularly creating art is learning, playing, taking chances and
not being afraid to mess things up.

It's only when you try things that you have never done before that you discover new gems. When you stretch yourself, you grow. You learn more about the art, about the materials you use, and about you.

Thank you for letting me share my process and my art. I hope, this month, you take the time to try something new. Something that's not "you" and see how it works out. You might be surprised!


Supplies: Collectable-Notable:all papers,assorted embellishments