Vacation!

Hello :)

I am leaving to Moscow, Russia, in a few hours... So this blog, along with me, will be on vacation until late September... Because I cannot bring any crafting supplies with me... :( (Too much to bring! And.. what if the bag gets lost?...)

So... Yes. Vacation. And then straight back to school! Yayyyy! :)

Hope everyone has a good rest of summer,

Xushenka.

Mint Box

Here's another decorated Altoids tin that I have made this summer! This one, however, is a present for a friend. :)

Top:

This is another stamped collage, colored with Prismacolor pencils. I distressed the edges with "Vintage Photo" Distress ink and highlighted some parts with Stickles glitter glue. To make the coffee look liquid, I added Diamond Glaze over the brown in the cups. :) I couldn't get it to come out well in the photo, but you can kinda see its gloss in the cup that's on the right. :)

Bottom:

Just like with the previous box I've made, the bottom is just a stamped collage of flowers, colored with Prismacolor pencils and the edges were distressed with the same Distressed ink like on the collage for the top.

Here's a better photo of how the ribbon looks from the front of the box:

I spent two days looking for the bottom ribbon! For some unknown reason there were no brown and pink ribbons that would fit this size. :/ So, I ended up using two ribbons... A pink one with black polka dots and a gorgeous brown transparent one with swirls on it.. I think it came out well :) But hunting for ribbons is definitely a hard job.. lol

I meant this box to continue serving as an Altoids mint box, so I just stuck the original mints back in there, and the original paper, too. (I saved them in Ziplock baggies so they don't get damaged.) And since a mint box isn't something people usually keep safe on a shelf.. But rather something one would throw in a purse/ bag/ backpack.. I have also made a little purse for the box so it doesn't get damaged :)

(On the inside, it's baby blue velvet.)

As easy as this little bag looks, it still managed to give me a little trouble! lol My sewing machine is at a friend's house 2 hours of driving away, and I got lucky that I was going to visit them this past weekend, so I didn't have to hand-sew the little bag. Well, I could have, but the quality and speed are so much better with a sewing machine ;) But... I totally forgot the pedal from my machine stayed at home in LA!.. So I had to run the poor machine with my hand. Not sure if that's good for it.. But I really needed to get this done. :/ So... The machine and I struggled for a few hours, and this is result :D I like it, and it fits the box (yay!), so it was totally worth the time and effort. :)

Another Just For Fun Challenge

It is the color challenge #23 at Just For Fun Rubber Stamps' blog! And the colors are kraft, red, and white. I decided to do some shape other than just a rectangle/square and a heart is what jumps to mind with red and white being among the colors.. And that was pretty easy. :) So, here it is.. :)

This card can't really "stand up" on it's own.. so I had to use a candle to hold it up, lol :)

I drew/cut out the hearts without any stencils, and embossed the white one with the D'vine Swirl Cuttlebug embossing folder. The dog is from the Dog's Life by Inkadinkado clear stamp set, stamped in black ink, colored with Prismacolor pencils (and that's where the kraft color comes in), then stamped again in black ink, and embossed with clear embossing powder by Denami Design. :) Stickles glitter glue makes up the border for the dog picture. And.. That's it!

Altered Tin

Up until a few weeks ago, I have done only cards. But then.. I had this tin from Altoids mints lying around, and those little boxes are just so great, I can never make myself throw them out. At the same time I was looking for something original and useful that I could make as a souvenir for a friend.. And that's how I came to trying out altering an Altoids tin! :) I found out that it's actually a pretty popular tin to alter, and I enjoyed looking at a lot of different beautiful designs online...

And here is... the first Altoids box that I've ever altered! :D

I was not making it for anyone in particular, so the design is more for "prettiness" rather a message for a friend.

Top:

Both the top and the bottom are basically collages stamped on a white cardstock, colored with Prismacolor pencils, and then distressed with the "Vintage Photo" Distress ink.. With Stickles glitter glue to finish it up and add some highlights and happiness to the collage :)

Bottom:

The stamps I have used are from the following sets: Doodle flowers by Inkadinkado, Lucky ladybugs and Make a wish from the Sarah Phelps collection, Sparkle clear: Tea by Hero Arts, and Series 14 by Studio G.

I really love how this box came out, and it is a lot thanks to the ribbons... Here's a better view of how the ribbons look on the front:

Don't these two ribbons just go together perfectly? :) I think they do... And their sizes fit the box perfectly, too... It is so hard to find ribbons whose sizes fit this box, my friend Laura even joked about how I should ask the ribbon companies to make more pretty ribbons that fit Altoids tins :D

Anyway.. This was my first attempt, and I liked it a lot :)