My Mind's Eye Blog

June Word of the Month

Doesn’t time just fly?  When you take the time to reflect upon the month that is ending, it seems like there is always a theme, one word that sums up the direction the past month took you in.  Today, our talented Guest Designer, Misty Willis and Design Team Member, Jana Eubank are sharing their word of the month with you.

We would love to see your “Word of the Month” layouts uploaded to our Facebook page!

 

Misty Willis: Friend

Featured Collection: Lime Twist

My word is FRIEND...

With my kids being zoned to a new school next year, they are very sad to be leaving behind some of their best friends.  I have spent this last month establishing a good foundation for them to continue building their friendships on, regardless of the distance during the school year.  This photo is my daughter with her two very best friends from Kindergarten.  They have had sleep overs, pool party parties, and library dates since school let out...and the summer is not over yet!  SO...my word this month is FRIEND...because a friend is a flower in the garden of life!

I featured the Lime Twist collection...and added a "twist" to the baker's twine.  I decided I wanted flowers...so I crocheted all of the flowers from the twine.  I added brads from the Lost and Found collection to serve as my centers..and viola...instant flowers that PERFECTLY match my layout!

 

 

Featured Collection: Stella & Rose – Mabel

I chose "adventure" as my word of the month for June because, like most of you, we have been running non-stop ever since summer began! The day after school let out, my family and I went on a vacation exploring the southern part of our state. We hit four national parks and 3 landmarks within 6 days . . . one of them being the Grand Canyon. We also visited Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, Monument Valley, the Four Corners, Lake Powell, saw an outdoor play, went horseback riding, and took a boat tour down the Colorado River. When we returned home the adventure continued with our backyard being torn up to address a water pipe issue. Not as fun as our vacation . . . but an adventure just the same!

I used the Stella & Rose Mabel collection with it's earthy colors and pop of orange (reminiscent of the orange mountains and rocks we saw on our vacation). The Lush 2 Orange Journal Blocks matched this collection perfectly! I finished off my page with digital die cut flowers and title, accented with the Stella & Rose Mabel decorative brads.

Misty’s Style

I have truly enjoyed being the Guest this month with My Minds Eye...thank you so much for having me!  It has been such an honor, and creating with My Minds Eye products is something that ANY crafter would love!  Aside from my assignments this month, I had a lot of fun just "playing" and getting my scrap on!  I almost couldn't decide what I wanted to do first!  LOL. Layouts...cards...home decor...Oh what is a girl to do with so much beauty at her fingertips!!!???

I decided to create a few decorations for the 4th Of July first.   We have had almost no rain down here in Texas, and we have a burn ban in effect...which means NO FIREWORKS displays for us to enjoy!!!  The kiddos are all so bummed about that...but what is worse, there are NO fireworks permitted at all, and no stands are being opened.  We always celebrate with fireworks down here, but since we can't this year, I decided to try to cheer my munchkins up in other ways.  I created a window banner for us to display, and I made several little table centerpiece decorations.  I am going to get some glow necklaces and bracelets for them and we will have a picnic in the floor in our living room if nothing else! LOL.  I also captured my kiddos eating our favorite summer time treat...Watermelon!  Summer is such a fun time of the year for kids, and I am glad to be able to spend my summers with my kids.

 

 

 

Father’s Day layouts

We hope you enjoyed celebrating the Father’s in your life last week.  We also hope you took the chance to take a photo of them!  A few of our designers have taken a moment to honor some of the important Father’s in their lives with a layout.  We hope you are inspired to create a similar layout.

Misty Willis: The Day we Celebrate Dad

Featured Collection: American Made

It is a layout honoring my Dad.  He taught me how important family is, and that being a good parent is crucial in the upbringing of my children.  He taught me about FAMILY.

He played with us, he wrestled with us, but when we needed it, he scolded us, too.  I tried to incorporate the rugged~rustic look with the fun and whimsical look to bring in all of his best traits.

The 5 kiddos on the bottom are my own 5 kids.  They are the results of some of the best things that I learned from my Dad.

 

Jana Eubank: You Are The Best Dad

Featured Collection: Lime Twist "Fly A Kite", Lush

When I saw the die cut journaling card from the Lime Twist "Fly a Kite" collection titled "10 Things I Love About You" I knew that it would be the perfect way to document my family's feelings about my husband. I wanted to add a casual feeling to my page design and decided to cut the journaling card apart into separate sections instead of leaving it whole. I attached some of the number strips with staples and left the others plain. I love the masculine touch a simple staple can add to a layout. The staples helped me decide to continue using silver as my accent color for this page. I pulled out some Lush Black Rhinestones and a few Lush brads (with silver rims) to carry the metal color around the page. The title is cut with an electronic die cut machine. I accented the first letter of the title with a length of Lime Twist Twine.

 

Suzanne Sergi: Family

I was so happy to capture this sweet photo of my children with their Father, Steven. It is from Easter, but I love how they are all so close to him. My husband is an amazing Father. He has always been so very hands on with the children, since they were babies.  Steven works almost six days a week, but is never too tired to spend time with them. I love seeing how much my children want to be with him. The Stella Rose Collection was the perfect canvas for this photo. I added some strips of vellum to soften the page. I added butterflies, because they simply make me happy. I added the premade brads from the Hattie, Happy Collection for the finishing details. For extra embellishing, I added inking to this page using the Memories stamps from Stella Rose.

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My Mind’s Eye/Simply Renee Blog swap winner is:

This is without a double the most beautiful project I have ever seen!!! Where do I draw my inspiration from?? my photos, products, scrappy friends, magazines...

Posted by: Michelle | June 22, 2011 at 09:29 PM

Misty’s Altered Clip It Up

When our fabulous guest designer, Misty Willis, sent pictures of her mini Clip It Up we were excited to see how beautiful and delicate she was able to make this fabulous (scrap) storage unit using our Stella & Rose – Hazel collection.

 

 

What’s most fun is to learn that Misty drew her inspiration for this beautiful project from fond memories of her Grandma.  Visit the Simply Renee blog to learn how the significance this project inspired Misty as she designed it.

Guess what!?  We have teamed up with Simply Renee for a fun giveaway! 

Leave a comment on our blog for a chance to WIN our Stella and Rose "Hazel" collection. Then visit the Simply Renee blog and leave a comment for a chance to WIN a Mini CIU.

Where do you draw your inspiration from? 

Blog Challenge 24: Winners!

What a fun blog challenge we had this month!  Thank you for sharing a sneak peek into your hearts with us through your song selections.  It was fun to visit your blogs and read why you chose the songs you chose.  Thank you for sharing your talent with us.

Are you ready to see who won!?

Layout Winner: Krissy Clark McKee

 

Layout Honorable Mention: Katja Schneider

 

Card Winner: Iwona Palamountain

 

For more beautiful entries, please visit the card and layout galleries:

Card gallery

 

Layout gallery

 

We hope you will join us next month!

Blog Challenge #24 update

We are still narrowing down the winners for Blog Challenge #24.  We will announce the winners tomorrow, June 21, 2011.

Father’s Day Cards

Designer: Misty Willis; Featured Collection: American Made

My Dad is my hero.  He is always there for me and I am blessed to have him for a Father.  When looking through paper and embellishments, I was drawn to the “hero” die cut.  I knew it would make the perfect card for my Dad.

 

Designer: Suzanne Sergi; Featured Collection: American Made

I could not resist using the American Made Collection for a Father's Day Card. I created this card for my father. He does live in Texas, so I needed a fast, and simple card to show him how much he means to us. This card has added embossing that dresses up plain cardstock into something special. I added the preprinted Hero die cut for my sentiment.  I did use the computer to add more to the sentiment along the bottom of the card. Twine, and a silver star charm from the Bits & Pieces (Stella Rose), makes this a special card for my Dad. He is definitely a Hero in my eyes.

 

 

Designer: Anam Stubbington; Featured Collection: Lime Twist 

Lime Twist is perfect for celebrating the wonderful men in your life whether they are Dads, Granddad’s, uncles or friends.

Birthday Banners

Nothing screams “Party!” like rows and rows of banners! We especially love the “Surprise” paper from the Hip Hooray Boy collection with all the different colors and shapes of pennants.

Building a birthday page is easy when you use the “Surprise” paper as your background. Add a few of the banner die cuts from the Hip Hooray Boy Accessory Sheet to bring texture and dimension to the forefront of your page. Anchor your photos on patterned paper with smaller scale prints and mat with a dark solid color.

Finally, add a bit of sparkle with Lush Rhinestones and you will have a page that is singing with celebration.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY by Jana Eubank

Features Hip Hooray Collection (patterned paper, die cuts)

Lush 2 Turquoise buttons & flocked journaling spots, Lush Red Rhinestones

Winner of Misty’s Favorite Things

is…. Emilia van den Heuvel

WOW! Your work is absolutely amazing, Misty! And may I say that I envy you for taking care of 5 kids! I've got 2 and my hands are full all the time:-)

Posted by: Emilia van den Heuvel | June 03, 2011 at 12:18 PM

Father’s Day Gifts

Today we have a couple of quick, easy and WONDERFUL Father’s Day Gifts.

 

Misty Willis:

Designer: Misty Willis; Featured Collection: Hip-Hooray – Boy

Here is a Quick and Easy Gift idea for Dad's Day!   A Candy Bar Bouquet!

Dads don't usually like a bouquet of flowers...but they will certainly LOVE a bouquet of their favorite candy bar!

I used the brighter colors of the Hip-Hooray collection to accent the bright colors of my husband's favorite candy bars.

The Reeses Cups and the Mr. Goodbar "bouquet" will certainly bring a smile to his face on Father's Day!

Want to make your own?  Download these instructions:  Download Misty Willis_Candy Bar Bouquet

 

Tiffani Smith:

 

 

Designer: Tiffani Smith; Featured Collection: Lime Twist 

This quick and easy father's day project doubles as a card if you choose to write messages on the green panels before adhering. This fun box uses 4 pieces of paper from the fabulous Lime Twist line.

To make this gift, cut 1 6x12 strip and 1 4x12 strip from the same paper (I used the multi-colored dot). The wider strip gets scored one inch from the edge of both sides of the shorter end. Both strips get scored into thirds on the long edge. Bend on all the creases. The widest strip should have 9 little boxes. Remove the small rectangles next to the center square so that the two squares on the ends have two flaps. I chose to cut 2 1x12 strips from a scrap I had, but you could also use the 2 inch strip left over from making the sides of the box. Both 1 inch strips get scored on the long edge at 1 inch, 5 1/8 inch, and the 9 1/4 inch marks. Fold on the creases and adhere the strips, using the 1 inch tabs to make a square. From a different paper (I used blue polka dots), cut a 3 1/4 inch strip. Cut this strip into fourths on the long edge so you have 4 boxes. From a new piece of paper (I used green stripes), cut a 3 inch strip and then cut it on the long edge every 2 3/4 inches so you end up with 4 boxes. Center the smaller boxes (green) onto the larger ones (blue) and adhere to the square made from the 1 inch strips (mine's orange). I made dividers for my cupcakes by cutting a 4 inch strip from a new piece of paper. I cut it into 3 4x4 boxes. 2 of these boxes get cut in half. Now you should have one box and 4 strips. The strips get a notch cut in the middle of the long side that goes just over halfway through the paper. the strips slide together to make dividers. The square goes in between the dividers to make space for 8 mini cupcakes. Use a hole punch to make 2 holes for handles (see picture). I used two pieces of tulle so I could tie bows on the end. Place cupcakes in the box in between the dividers (see below for the most delicious and quickest recipe), fold up the sides of the box, and place the 'strip square' around the box to hold it together.

Cupcake Recipe:
Cupcake:
    1 box of vanilla cake mix
    1 can of diet orange Crush
Frosting
    1 large (2 small) box of instant sugar-free vanilla pudding
    1 cup skim milk
    12 oz. cool whip
Mix the cake mix and soda. Mini cupcakes get cooked at 350 for 15 minutes.  When the cupcakes are cool, frost immediately before serving.  Mix pudding and milk until it just starts to thicken. Fold in Cool Whip.