Altering with Hello Spring

Little Yellow Bicycle's Hello Spring is such a happy collection. So many embellishments to choose from and so many ways to show them off.  The design team at Little Yellow Bicycle has come up with some ways to alter things with Hello Spring!

I decided to make an 8x10 canvas to tuck into a white frame today.  I really loved the little chipboard birdie and wanted to give her a home!  :)

Here is what I came up with. I made this little bird cage for her to live in.  It will fit easily into an 8x10 frame, as soon as I get one!

There are a few little tips that I found for making this bird cage.

You can see a touch of glare on the 'wires' of the cage.  I couldn't seem to get a picture without them.  Funny, because you don't see them when looking at it IRL.  For the purposes of explaining what I did, it was perfect though!

Tip:  Cut the strips of paper about 1/4 of an inch wide and distress.  Then adhere them to strips of transparency.  This will make the paper stronger and keep it from bending.  Transparency will also help this project stand the test of time by keeping it in the possition you placed it in.  You should also place a strip of tranparency under the bottom section of the cage for the same reasons.

These flowers are from the LYB flower kit.  Layer several of the flowers from the kit together to make your flowers.  I also added a punched flower on the top and some little glitter centers. 

Tip:  Use foam tape to adhere the flowers and help with the overlapping.  Don't forget, you can layer foam tape, too.  Layering the tape under the higher placed flowers will keep them in place and make them lay correctly.

I wanted to use the glittery chipboard clouds on this project.  Because they were a more pastel color, I just glued them down to brighter colored cardstock and cut around them to add some of the brights to that corner.  Easy! 

A couple of other tips before you go!

Tip:  The top of the cage was made with a circle and a scalloped circle punch.

Tip:  I changed the string behind the banner.  I wanted to use a bright yellow twine to better match my project.  Just gently pull the other string off the back of the fabric banner and glue down a new string if you need to make a change on your project or page.

Don't forget to drop by the Little Yellow Bicycle Blog to see what the other design team members came up with!

Little Yellow Bicycle Mini Album

It's time for Mini Albums at Little Yellow Bicycle!  Some of the Biker Chicks have been working on Mini Albums using the new Hello Spring Collection.  Be sure to check out the Little Yellow Bicycle Blog for LOTS of ideas!

Hello Easter

This little album was made using a Little Yellow Bicycle Canvas Covered Chipboard Album.  I cut down a piece of paper to decocrate because I wanted some of the canvas to show.  The little tree is from the Favorite Pieces Sticker Sheet.  I used foam dots on a few of the flower stickers to add some dimension.

I had a limited number of pictures, so I chose to just decorate a few of the pages without adding pictures.  The grass on this page is just freehand cutting. 

Tip:  Because the pages are chipboard, be sure to add stitching elements before you adhere the paper to the page.

I used a couple of the Journal Cards on this page instead of using them as journal cards.  I cut the green one and hid the cut behind the picture to make it appear longer than it is.

If you don't have enough pictures of any one event, use pictures taken at different times to tell your story.  For this album, I used pictures of the girls visiting the Easter Bunny, coloring eggs,  hunting eggs, and Easter Morning. 

Tip:  This little scallopd chipboard piece is actually meant to say "MOM"  I just flipped it over to say "WOW" instead. 

This is the page that shows beside the above page.  Using foam dots makes layering stickers and the picture easy!

Tip:  You can see the pink at the bottom of the page is attached to the back.  One of the fun things about Mini Albums is that you can use overlapping pieces to compliment both sides.

Here is the opposite side of the above page.  I love that the Little Yellow Bicycle Decorative Edge Cardstock is double sided.  It makes it perfect for this!

Using ric-rac and ribbon is an easy way to embellish your pages.  I like to use my Xyron X to attach ric-rac in strips as shown here.

I HAD to use this adorable picture of the girls!!  You might notice from one of the earlier pages, that Laynee is kissing her little sister, too! 

I used a punch to make the scalloped edge around the sticker on the top corner. 

Tip:  Think about layering similar items that are the same.  I did this with the bow shaped chipboard on the bottom corner.  I then just tied a bow around it.

When I do Mini Albums for other people, I always try to leave room for journaling.  I think it's important for us to hand write some of our stories.  I know that I still smile and get such a wonderful feeling when I come across things that my grandmother wrote herself. 

Tip:  I created the journaling section in Word.  I just added the lines and put a matching border around it.  I wanted the embellishments to take center stage, so I made the lines a very light grey.  It will make it easy to write neatly and also will not take away from the handwriting or the embellishments.

Another page that is just decorated without a picture.  I included the girl's names and the year here.  I love that one of the stickers that said little lovelies!!  You will see why on the next page! 

Could there be anything sweeter than this?  They are just beautiful and I'm so thankful to their mom for sharing her pictures with me!! 

One last tip!  As you can see from this side view picture, my albums tend to get pretty bulky!  I always keep BIG rings on hand to help with this.  Putting large rings on a bulky album helps to make it lay much better!

I hope that I have given you some ideas that you can use!  It was a lot of fun creating this little Mini Album!  Don't forget to stop by the Little Yellow Bicycle Blog for more ideas! 

Technique Tuesday at Bo Bunny

It's Technique Tuesday on the Bo Bunny Blog! 

Today a couple of the design team members are sharing ideas and tips for distressing your pages. 

This was made using the brand new Little Miss Collection.  You won't want to miss this collection for your baby and little girls photos! Be sure to check out the perfectly coordinated flowers that Bo Bunny is introducing for the new collections.

Welcome Home

This is a picture of a friend's newborn on the day they were taking her home.  Isn't she a little beauty?  The colors in this picture couldn't have matched the Little Miss Collection any better, so I couldn't resist using it!  :)

I like to just use the edge of my scissors to distress the edges of my paper and then add a couple of strategically placed tears. The great thing about distressing is that if you accidentally tear your paper while distressing, you can just ink it up and act like you planned it! I prefer the Cat's Eye Chalk Ink in Chestnut Roan for my inking on distressed pages.

 The flowers and doilies were also lightly inked and then sprayed with Glimmer Mist. I prefer the Wheatfields color to give a light antiqued look.

 I also sprayed the ribbon and the fabric flower with the Wheatfield Glimmer Mist to give them a bit of an antiqued look.

To crimp the flowers a bit, I just stuck the end of a paintbrush in the middle and smashed them up a bit around the handle.  Simple!

Be sure to drop by the Bo Bunny Blog to see Tomoko's take on distressing!

Little Yellow Bicycle and Petaloo!

Little Yellow Bicycle is teaming up with Petaloo this week!  This is such a perfect combination!  Little Yellow Bicycle has created the ADORABLE spring collection!  It's called Hello Spring.  You can see it here.  Petaloo sent us a wonderful selection of flowers to add to our projects.  I chose to use these HAPPY daisies to complement these precious pictures and adorable collection.

What's great is that you have a chance to WIN a prize from both Little Yellow Bicycle and Petaloo all week!!  Rush over to their blogs to get the details!

Little Yellow Bicycle Blog - Petaloo Blog

While you are at the Little Yellow Bicycle Blog, you can see the details of this page.  I also shared some tips for layering and choosing your flowers. 

 

Paper Creations

I am over the moon excited to have received my copy of the Summer Paper Creations Magazine!

Check this out!  My first card cover!!

You can guess from what I wrote at the top of this post that it's a happy day for me!  :)  What is terrific is that YOU can have a happy day soon, too!  Be sure to check out the magazine to find out how you can win some FABULOUS Spellbinders Templates!! 

Paper Creations is giving away a set of Spellbinders Templates

to one lucky winner! 

You can also find the details at the Paper Creations Website. 

Thanks for sharing in my excitement and Good Luck with the contest!

National Scrapbook Day!

National Scrapbook Day is right around the corner!  Be sure to check out the Little Yellow Bicycle Blog for all the details!  There are lots of prizes to be had!  You won't want to miss it!

Nifty Gifty with Swoon

Little Yellow Bicycle has recently released the new Swoon Collection. Today, the design team has come up with some ways to use it for wedding gifts. There are so many pretty ideas on the Little Yellow Bicycle Blog!  Be sure to check out what the other design team members have created!

I chose to alter a paper mache book box.  This is the perfect size to hold all those little things that you want to keep from your wedding and to do it in one place. 

I used a wide black satin ribbon around my box to give the look of it being tied closed.  I also added some clear stickers from Deja Veiws to the 'binding'. 

Here, you can see the way I did the 'pages'.  I used striped paper for this part instead of trying to make it look like actual pages.  The lacy accents on this paper give it more detail.  Love that.  To cover the place where my paper met, I just glued on some silver ball trim.  Super easy!  Finally, I couldn't resist adding a little silver heart charm.

In this close-up, you can see the layers.  Check out those little silver sequined flowers!  I am wild about how pretty they are!  Such a perfect little accent to stand alone or center the flowers from the flower kit! 

This is the inside cover of my box.  I wanted the book to easily open, so instead of having the ribbon actually go around the box, I cut it and glued it down to the inside edge.  To cover the ends, I added one of the journaling cards.  This is where I can put the names and dates of the wedding. 

For more tips, please drop by the Little Yellow Bicycle Blog!