Modern Mercantile | Mini Pattern Paper

 

One of my most favorite items in the newest line is the single sheet of Mini Patterns. There are so many different ways that you can use it! The simplest is to cut them apart separately, but you can also fold them expertly and make a mini book or cut some simple patterns like i did into each 4"x4" square which creates an entirely new piece of layered pattern paper.

The silhouette cameo is perfect for this (but you could also use one of martha's all over the page punches too) as the grid in the software makes it easy to pop your shapes into it so you know exactly where to cut, and exactly how far apart to space your shape, as i did with a simple heart that i created in photoshop and then loaded into my silhouette software as a .png file. 

Then I cut some 4" x 4" papers and added them behind the hearts to create some extra patterns (the ledger paper is from last month's antiquarian kit).

After creating the new background i added a few pictures and some simple embellishments. fast and easy but makes a big impact.

happy cutting!

Vintage Decorations

The holiday season is upon us. Thanksgiving is in a few weeks (can you believe it!?) and Christmas is just around the corner which means of course it's holiday crafting time. Today I'm going to show you how to make a simple vintage inspired ornament or wall hanging with old book covers.

It should only take you about 15 minutes to make, and at this busy time of year I love fast, cute crafts that I can use to decorate my home. I especially love cute holiday crafts that incorporate texture and a good mix of vintage & new products.

Supplies needed :
JBS - Christmas Ribbon paper, Red Black line accessory sheet paper, rhinestone stars in red, rhinestone brad in red, seam binding in red & white,
vintage - book cover, reflector, milk cap & sewing bobbin (from Nov 2012 antiquarian kit), chandelier prism, german foil
misc - eyelets, foam adhesive squares

Gather your supplies & cut a 1.5" piece of the Christmas ribbon paper and make an accordion flower. glue the reflector onto the center of the book cover and glue the accordion flower on top of the reflector. add punched hanging holes to top of book cover, add eyelets and ribbon.

Layer the milk-cap onto the accordion flower and cut the "J" & "Y" from the new red black extension accessory sheet.

Layer & glue all of the elements until they're stacked as shown. use the sewing bobbin as the "O" in "JOY" and add the rhinestone brad as an accent. Add the Chandelier dangle to the bottom of the book cover and accent with a red rhinestone star sticker.

Simple & fast.

Happy holiday crafting!

Scrap Vintage : Mixing old & new

 

I joke with friends on instagram that #isaveoldthings. I can't go to a thrift or garage sale without picking up a few things that others might think are worthless. I have piles of things in the studio that i store in bins & boxes.  Interesting old wooden tools with painted handles. Broken vintage jewelry, especially if it has some bling. Interesting pieces of chippy wood from an old workshop. Christmas reflectors, mercury glass beads and old red dennison labels. Vintage metal sewing machine bobbins and wooden industrial thread spools. Bottles full of anagram letters and wooden bingo numbers. I can't help it.

It's one of the reasons why I adore the JBS line and the kits so much, especially the Antiquarian. There are always gorgeous vintage bits & pieces to use, From paper ephemera to cool buttons and beads, Jenni finds the most amazing things (just wait til you see November's, it's my fav yet!).

I love how incorporating these items into a piece, mixed with newer JBS designs, works so well. Adding a little metal, glitter and bling can add so much texture to something you're making. The vignette I made above uses a vintage album page from a past antiquarian kit (there's some similar ones in the shop) as the base as well as mix of vintage & new pieces from JBS that I had stored in a vintage cake tin on my studio table. 

I hope to see all of you incorporating a little more vintage into your work.

Happy Friday!