Flower tutorial - freshening up some of your beloved flowers

If your anything like me in the flower department you have a drawer (Or three....) dedicated to these beauties!

I finally have gotten to the point where I need to really start using them but because I have so many and for so long I needed to somehow "freshen" them up. So, I started playing and these are my new favorite little flowers!

Fold all the petals in and give the centers a little "Pinch". It only takes five to make these.

Then squeeze some hot glue into a dime size puddle and put all of your centers in your glue, adjust as necessary.

Once the glue is "cool" go ahead and add it to your project. Easy peasy! 

I hope you are inspired to start playing and giving these little puffs a try.

Addicted to flowers - Tutorial

I adore this cute little wall hook picked up from Ben Franklin. 

“Decorative Wall Hook”

Designed by: Cheri Piles http://cherinspirations.blogspot.com

Featuring: Teresa Collins Designs – Timeless, Blingage & Blingage II

Supplies:

Labels paper, flocked paper, gray damask, decorative brads, chipboard elements, die cut card set, Gentry’s glitter, Donna’s gems. Wood Door hook, Claudine Hellmuth studio matte, hot glue, 1.5 inch chipboard circle.

Instructions:

Preparing your page components:

1. Cut the following pieces from your papers:

●      Cut back side of labels paper to size for your door hook plaque, 7.5 x 3.5

●      Cut flocked paper strips for outer edge in half inch strips.

●      Punch out black tag from die cut card set sheet.

●      Punch out quote in pink oval from chipboard elements.

2. For flower:

·         Cut 14 flower petals out of gray damask as shown in photos.

• Brush studio matte around edges
• Dip in Gentry’s glitter around glued edges – let dry all the way.

• Roll petals around a pen

• Gently unroll petals and place them facing the same direction so your petals all match. Hot glue a puddle onto the middle of your chipboard circle and start layering your petals in a circle.

• Add another puddle of hot glue in the center and layer your 2^nd layer of petals overlapping your first layer.
• After glue is all dry pierce hole in center

·         Place brad in center.

Assembly

1. Glue back of labels paper to front of plaque.
2. Glues strips of flocked paper to edges of plaque.
3. Glue the black tag onto the labels paper – just a bit off center.
4. Hot glue your flower to the black tag.
5. Peel off sticky backing from chipboard quote and place in bottom right – just overlapping the bottom of the black tag.
6. Measure and cut length from black gems from the Donna’s Gems (Blingage II) place along both the top and bottom of plaque.

I find that I am now looking at every piece of damask paper in a new way now, I just love making these flowers. Hope you will too!

Teresa Collins Designs - My Notations album part 3 of 3

PART 3:

Thanks for looking!! Hope you are inspired to create your own! This is bar none, my favorite kit! I can't believe how much you get including the book for less than $20!!

For more inspiration be sure to check out the newsletter for more designs using the kit: Teresa Collins Designs Newsletter.

Need to know where to get one? The Hens Den has them for $18.99

Have a really great weekend!! ~Cheri

Teresa Collins Designs - My Notations album part 2 of 3

Part 2

I love the alphabet stickers that come with the kit, just the perfect size!

I love that Danny's grandmother wrote on the back of the photo's I know that it won't last forever but It's nice to have her hand writting. 

I glued lace trim right to the page. Love the look of it, it was perfect for this book.

You wouldn't believe how much beaded pearl strands I have, I love tying them wit ribbons. I glued an extra large jump ring in between two of Jesse's jewels from the blingage line to create the dangle.

Ok, check on back tomorrow for part 3!

Also check out the Newsletter for more inspiration from the design team! Need to know where to get your own Notations Kit? check out The Hens Den!

Be sure to take a peak at Teresa's and the Design team blogs for the Core'dinations Blog Swap!

~Cheri

Teresa Collins Designs - My Notations album part 1 of 3

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this kit!! I can not say it enough!

You got to see a sneak peak here on the Teresa Collins Newsletter, if you didn't see it, go here and sign up and check out what the design team did with theirs... Talk about inspired!!

I put so much detail into this album I have to show you in three parts! This is a family heritage album of Danny's grandparents and then of his mom, I feel so blessed to have these photo's!
I will try to share with you techniques as we go.... when I talk about inking, I mean LAYERS of ink over the top of each other.

I sanded the cover and then added a sparkle mist spray in bronze you can't really tell in the photo's but it's there, trust me! For the big flower (go look at the before - it's called Paisley's flower) I took all the layers apart and "melted" it over a candle and then painted it in cream. For the other flowers I inked them and then layered them all (and I mean a table full of flowers) with glossy accents, some of them I also stamped with the word stamp from this stamp set. Then I inked the envelope and adhered it to the book.

I love the binding on this, I punched a whole in it and tied a huge black satin ribbon and paired it with a really wide brown ribbon and beaded pearl chain and made a great big long bow. I then connected the new Blinagage clock and keys from a chain.

For the dividers I inked all of the pages and then painted the edges and re-inked over them and then put rub on's from a wedding sheet I had in my stash. The word family is from the sticker alphabets that come with the kit and they are already distressed around the edges.

I inked and painted the page inserts. Painted page reinforcers in bronze/black. Inked and added Gentry's glitter to frames.

This page is a little tricky, see this is a tag that is attached to the right side of the page insert. (don't you just love metal photo corners?)

And here is the tag when opened. I taped the pages together and then I added the frame over the top to hide the tape. I also stamped the Monogram M in the frame. So, on the tag - the edge is painted in pink and then painted in cream on just the edge for some really awesome layering, which I didn't think was enough so I inked over it too!

The tag's whole purpose was to hid the journaling underneath, pretty cool! Oh, I stamped the words I do on this page after inking and painting it.

Can you ever have to much Gentry's Glitter? I seriously think NOT! lol!!

Isn't that sweet?

check back tomorrow for part 2!

In the mean time.... check out the newsletter for more design team inspiration.

Need a kit of your own? My friend over at The Hens Den has them for $18.99!! It comes with the book, dividers, tabs, tags, alphabet stickers, page inserts, die cuts and and and...

Hello 2011

I'm so EXCITED for 2011... So much goodness is in the air.


I finally found my "One Little Word" or rather it found me, in a few different ways. I had several words the last few days that were rolling around but something happened this evening, something good and it made me realize I had found it. Create, It means more to me that what one would normally think the word to mean. "One little word" is a phenomenon that Ali Edwards started and has caught on like a ripple effect, grows bigger and deeper each year.


CREATE


For me it means, yes, create art. Create good paths to follow, create good friendships, new friendships - everlasting friendships, create meals my family won't gag on, create experiences for my clients that will create bonds of everlasting friendships, create meaningful time with my family, create goodness to surround myself in.


So, speaking of creating, I've been creating for CHA, I'm so excited!!! I won't be attending but I'll be there in spirit watching blogs and videos and for photo's to appear on Facebook.


This week has also been busy at the office so I'm trying my very best to manage my time and prioritize so that after I'm done working hard, I can create hard. Speaking of hard... Started back on my exercise routine...YIKES, really... I hadn't really watched what I was eating very well over the holidays...5lbs I gained...ugh! I'd rather get a route canal then exercise but it is what it is... oh and eat better! HA! I won't say goodbye to my coffee but I'll compromise and give up half my chocolate intake...who can create with out chocolate..c'mon!! lol!!


Speaking of creating, I really needed something "new" to spice me up right before the holidays so I brought out Grandma's baubles, took apart some of her old old old Avon jewlery, watched a few you tube video tutorials on how to make these little satin flowers and made myself a little something old "NEW" again!

Yeah, how about that sideways photo??? It's straight on in my computer but here, not so much!! I've tried to fix it, but my blog is stubborn, so I'm not going to sweat it and get all stressed, if YOU just put your left ear to your shoulder, you should see it perfectly!

So, how cute is that? I've gotten SO many compliments on it and I now have a sweet little addiction to making those flowers. Just go to you tube and search for how to make satin flowers or satin flower tutorial, there's so many to watch.


Have a great one! ✿ Cheri

Fabric flowers- as seen on Good things Utah!

Today on the TCD BLOG Teresa shares step by step instructions on how to create these Fabric Flowers, she is going to be on Good Things Utah this morning demonstrating how to make them and use them to add flair to projects.

We made these flowers at the Girls Night Out at the CBC. It was the one with the really long line. :)

Since then my mother in law and I have been making them like crazy. They are so fun and easy! They would be a great item to make at a birthday party!

For step by step instructions head on over to the TCD Blog!

Have a great day! ~Cheri

There's always an upside....

So, this morning was pretty exciting, nothing like watching the sun come out. I'm not the only one that gets a little giddy just about all my local friends on FB were mentioning the sun!!! Everywhere I went, people were really happy! It's like the people in the Pacific North West were waking up after a long winters nap. On the way to the office I slid my sunshades on, opened the sunroof, cranked up some Sugarland and took the scenic route. Oh happy day!!!

I've had this idea rolling around in my head all day. I had purchased this cute little bead set at a local scrapbook convention a few months back and I was ready to "PLAY" with it and a few other little items. I could hardly wait to get home.

I've gathered up a few of the "key" items. Then I started putting the beads together and the head pin is too small!!! I am so bummed out, I don't have any spares. So hmpf. Bummer!!

I was graciously lent an awesome SLR Camera from my father in law about a week in a half ago. This is a BIG deal. Every time I use it I make sure I use the neck strap, I'm soooo paranoid of dropping it. It came with a VIDEO, which of course I have not watched yet. My mother in law asks me every morning when we exercise...have you watched it yet?????? I'm the kind of person that likes to do... I've taken 100's of pictures and have deleted 100's of pictures with it so far. So, I'm going to pop a bag of pop corn and watch the video, not because I have time now since my project was a bust, not because I want to but because I REALLY need to learn how to use it to it's fullest and best capability. That's the upside. ~Cheri

Do you save these and use them?

I have a drawer dedicated to these little strips. See the top two rows, how sometimes there's just a bit of the color, it's the perfect size to make a little flower if cut right, you just fold the words underneath, you never see them! See the last little strip with the dots on it? Super cute!


I'm going to show you a couple of examples, I should explain first.... I have this garden book. It's a ledger book that I've altered that I picked up a office supply store. This book actually show cases my growth, I DO NOT have a green thumb to save my life!!! I've been taking pictures of my little garden area, when I plant something really great and again when I've managed to some how kill it. True story... Just thought you should know a little of my humor and why the example has a dead plant. :)

See how I used the the strips to create the flower?


This next example is from another project and I just used them as a border and sewed them together.

Here's a shot of the front of my garden book. It reads " All Life is an Experiment. The more experiments you make the better." - How fitting is that!!!

Here is a close up of the clasp, I REALLY wish I could remember where and when I purchased it.

So if your reading this, do you save those strips and use them? If you do, do you have any other ideas to use them for? ~Cheri