Art Girlz Scrapbook Nook

Thankful for ...

I'm thankful for so much: family, friends, good food and more. We went on a trip to Virginia at Thanksgiving. It's becoming a "holiday" tradition. We've gone to almost every cave in the Shenandoah Valley ... loved them all.

Made a layout of me and my "guy" in the Shenandoah Caverns ... getting CAVE KISSES. I used the BasicGrey ROMANI (or GYPSY) papers. Just love them, and they reminded me of happiness. I also added Me & My Big Ideas (MAMBI) Rhinestone word "Sweetheart" (sort of difficult to see in the picture. The rhinestones are pink on an orange cardstock. Looks good in person. Of course, I had to add some Prima Flowers too. Other odds and ends are brads from Queen & Company and some Fastenater staples to hold the red organdy ribbon in place.

Overall, a quick page. Just need a little journaling about experiencing "Cave Kisses" -- it's not what you think. Most of the caves have water dripping from the ceiling. And they say it's good luck if you get a drop of water "kissed" down on you!

Using WATERCOLOR Wonder Crayons

Last year I purchased WATERCOLOR WONDER Crayons from Stampin'Up! -- in ALL their colors (48). I felt that if I didn't have an ink pad, I still had the crayon in the same color as the paper. I don't know if anyone else makes / sells something like these watercolor crayons, I haven't seen anything like them in stores. These are different than the artists oil crayons, I tried those.

They look like regular crayons. But they are a little softer. I'm sure there are many ways to use them, but I've only tried (so far) two different techniques: 1) directly coloring onto rubber stamp; and 2) using paintbrush and picking up color to do "traditional" watercoloring. I have only used the traditional rubber stamps with the crayons, I'll have to try the clear stamps to see how well they work.

TECHNIQUE TUTORIALS:

COLORING RUBBER STAMP & Misting stamp

* stamps with bold images work better than fine line drawings.

* color stamp image with crayons, using a number of colors, if desired. You can also stamp several times if you use a stamp positioner to make sure you've got the stamp in alignment with the previous stamped image.

* LIGHTLY spritz colored stamp image with water. Start with a fine mist and try various amounts of water.

* stamp image on DRY cardstock. Do not use a coated cardstock. You want the wet crayon to be absorbed into the paper. Even better if you use "watercolor" paper. You can find this in any craft or art supply store. It usually has a slight texture.

Card #1 uses technique of coloring directly onto the rubber and then misting stamp and stamping on DRY paper.

These flowers were misted quite heavily with water. The stems were stamped a second time and the rubber was slightly misted so that the image is more clear & crisp.

I'm not sure what type of flowers these are supposed to be, but the rubber stamp looks almost like dandylion puffs!

COLOR IN IMAGE -- PAINTING:

* use an image with an open design so that you can color it in.

* wet a paint brush (size depends on your images) and gently rub the end of the crayon to pick up color. This reminds me of grade school when we wet our brushes and swirled into the watercolor paints.

* color image. For darker shades, add some crayon DIRECTLY to stamped image and use brush to spread the crayon color.

* the more water you use, the lighter the color will be. For very light colors, you may want to add crayon directly to the paper and then brush over.

I found this technique to be more satisfying that coloring directly onto the stamp.

TIP: To preserve the crayons: rub crayon on waxed paper or acetate sheet (just colors you will use on this project). You only need a small spot, probably smaller than a dime.

Then use this as your pallette, like a painter would. You can mix colors -- dip paintbrush into one color, then swirl it around and pick up another color.

Best part of using the pallette is that you can save it for future projects -- or for continuing on a project you had not finished.

Anyone else tried the WATERCOLOR CRAYONS? Are there any other brands out there besides the ones Stampin'Up! sells (in their specially matched 48 colors).

Her first College Acceptance!

It's been a stressful few months ... my older daughter is a Senior in high school and has been doing all the college applications, visiting colleges and more. There are early decision deadlines, if you're SURE you want to attend that college, then there are the deadlines in May -- I guess if you didn't get accepted to your favorite school.

Today, as she does every day, my younger daughter (a Junior in high school) brought in the mail. And it was totally unceremonius. When I went looking through the mail, I found bills and one letter from the Admissions Office of one of her first choices ... Belmont Abbey College. The school is very small (800 students?), and is located just outside Charlotte, NC. The tuition is more than I make in a year ... so we don't know how she'd pay for it.

But, it was exciting to get that first acceptance letter. She's applied to their "Honors College", which I'm sure she'll have no problem getting into. As competitive as their high school is ... most any college / university might not seem so difficult.

Okay, so I'm very proud of my daughters! I just had to share. We've been taking pictures at the colleges that we visited so I can put them in their scrapbooks. I'm taking Ali Edwards idea of being a "Life Artist". Looking for your college, and new home for the next 4 years is a big and important stage in your life.

Recipe Book -- great holiday gift idea

I've been collecting a number of family recipes lately. Realizing that many were written in the handwriting of my mother or grandmothers, I wanted to save them in a special way. I decided to make color copies of the handwritten recipes -- so I could make several books to give to my daughters, sister, mother and one for myself!

I think everyone has had the 3x5 file card box for recipes. Along with some "hand me down" cook books, this was how I organized my first recipe collection. Over the years, the collection has grown, but the most favored recipes are the ones we use all the time.

I love FLAIR DESIGNS papers & embellishments. They have a collection of papers called What's Cooking? that is just perfect for recipe-themed projects. We're also thinking about using it for our Thanksgiving pictures.

We were reading Flair Designs blog to get some ideas, and found a great recipe book project!

This adorable project was made by April Derrick for Flair Designs. Go directly to Flair Designs blog, or see project below:

A Recipe Folder with Flair!

I have been looking forward to creating my own recipe folder for awhile now, and the What's Cooking Collection from Flair seemed the perfect choice to decorate it! Whenever I find a new recipe I would like to try, I scan it and print out a copy or tear out the magazine page and store it in a file folder. Right now I have a huge file folder with no organization, and it's driving me crazy. To remedy this, I purchased a three-ring binder with clear pockets on the outside to decorate which I'll use to organize and store the following:

* New Recipes to Try

* Recipes We Love to Make

* Special Holiday Recipes

* A Quick Pick List - This is a reference sheet I can refer to when I'm trying to think of something to make. I have cooked a lot of different dishes, however, whenever I sit down to plan meals for the week, or even for the night, I can usually only think of about three. In this section of the folder, I include a complete list of all the meals that my family likes to eat—some are newer ones for which I'll need to look up the recipe. Some are ones I've made several times, and I know them already by heart. If I make a new recipe, and the family gives it a thumbs-up, I add it to the Quick Pick List!

Note: I added colored dividers to separate the categories and included a couple of blank ones to allow for new sections.

April's Favorite Recipes Folder
by: April Derrick

Supplies:
* Patterned Paper - Flair Designs What's Cooking Collection: Bake-Off, What's Cooking, Spicy Dots
* Stickers - Flair Designs What's Cooking Cardstock Stickers
* Rub-Ons - Flair Designs Cocoa Rub-ons
* Cardstock - Kraft from Hobby Lobby
* 3-Ring Binder
* Ink - Clearsnap Colorbox Fluid Chalk Ink in Chestnut Roan
* Adhesive - AdTech, Zots

I decorated the front and back cover, as well as the spine of the folder. I measured and cut three pieces of kraft cardstock to fit the openings of the clear pockets, then I added patterned paper and stickers on top of the cardstock. This made the panels a little sturdier and easier to push down in the covers without wrinkling. I also inked the edges of all the papers and stickers to give them a slightly distressed and more homey feel!

* Quick tip: I lifted the heart sticker out of its circle and inked the edges to help it stand out a little more. If I wasn't trying to squeeze it into the folder pocket, I would have added pop dots to the back of the heart to also add dimension!

Have a wonderful week,
April

P.S. Congrats to Shannon and Amy! Thanks for sharing about your holiday traditions.  

Find WHAT'S COOKING collection in our online store.

I have been looking forward to creating my own recipe folder for awhile now, and the What's Cooking Collection from Flair seemed the perfect choice to decorate it! Whenever I find a new recipe I would like to try, I scan it and print out a copy or tear out the magazine page and store it in a file folder. Right now I have a huge file folder with no organization, and it's driving me crazy. To remedy this, I purchased a three-ring binder with clear pockets on the outside to decorate which I'll use to organize and store the following:

* New Recipes to Try

* Recipes We Love to Make

* Special Holiday Recipes

* A Quick Pick List - This is a reference sheet I can refer to when I'm trying to think of something to make. I have cooked a lot of different dishes, however, whenever I sit down to plan meals for the week, or even for the night, I can usually only think of about three. In this section of the folder, I include a complete list of all the meals that my family likes to eat—some are newer ones for which I'll need to look up the recipe. Some are ones I've made several times, and I know them already by heart. If I make a new recipe, and the family gives it a thumbs-up, I add it to the Quick Pick List!

Note: I added colored dividers to separate the categories and included a couple of blank ones to allow for new sections.

April's Favorite Recipes Folder
by: April Derrick

Supplies:
* Patterned Paper - Flair Designs What's Cooking Collection: Bake-Off, What's Cooking, Spicy Dots
* Stickers - Flair Designs What's Cooking Cardstock Stickers
* Rub-Ons - Flair Designs Cocoa Rub-ons
* Cardstock - Kraft from Hobby Lobby
* 3-Ring Binder
* Ink - Clearsnap Colorbox Fluid Chalk Ink in Chestnut Roan
* Adhesive - AdTech, Zots

I decorated the front and back cover, as well as the spine of the folder. I measured and cut three pieces of kraft cardstock to fit the openings of the clear pockets, then I added patterned paper and stickers on top of the cardstock. This made the panels a little sturdier and easier to push down in the covers without wrinkling. I also inked the edges of all the papers and stickers to give them a slightly distressed and more homey feel!

* Quick tip: I lifted the heart sticker out of its circle and inked the edges to help it stand out a little more. If I wasn't trying to squeeze it into the folder pocket, I would have added pop dots to the back of the heart to also add dimension!

Have a wonderful week,
April

P.S. Congrats to Shannon and Amy! Thanks for sharing about your holiday traditions.  

A Recipe Folder with Flair!

I have been looking forward to creating my own recipe folder for awhile now, and the What's Cooking Collection from Flair seemed the perfect choice to decorate it! Whenever I find a new recipe I would like to try, I scan it and print out a copy or tear out the magazine page and store it in a file folder. Right now I have a huge file folder with no organization, and it's driving me crazy. To remedy this, I purchased a three-ring binder with clear pockets on the outside to decorate which I'll use to organize and store the following:

* New Recipes to Try

* Recipes We Love to Make

* Special Holiday Recipes

* A Quick Pick List - This is a reference sheet I can refer to when I'm trying to think of something to make. I have cooked a lot of different dishes, however, whenever I sit down to plan meals for the week, or even for the night, I can usually only think of about three. In this section of the folder, I include a complete list of all the meals that my family likes to eat—some are newer ones for which I'll need to look up the recipe. Some are ones I've made several times, and I know them already by heart. If I make a new recipe, and the family gives it a thumbs-up, I add it to the Quick Pick List!

Note: I added colored dividers to separate the categories and included a couple of blank ones to allow for new sections.

April's Favorite Recipes Folder
by: April Derrick

Supplies:
* Patterned Paper - Flair Designs What's Cooking Collection: Bake-Off, What's Cooking, Spicy Dots
* Stickers - Flair Designs What's Cooking Cardstock Stickers
* Rub-Ons - Flair Designs Cocoa Rub-ons
* Cardstock - Kraft from Hobby Lobby
* 3-Ring Binder
* Ink - Clearsnap Colorbox Fluid Chalk Ink in Chestnut Roan
* Adhesive - AdTech, Zots

I decorated the front and back cover, as well as the spine of the folder. I measured and cut three pieces of kraft cardstock to fit the openings of the clear pockets, then I added patterned paper and stickers on top of the cardstock. This made the panels a little sturdier and easier to push down in the covers without wrinkling. I also inked the edges of all the papers and stickers to give them a slightly distressed and more homey feel!

* Quick tip: I lifted the heart sticker out of its circle and inked the edges to help it stand out a little more. If I wasn't trying to squeeze it into the folder pocket, I would have added pop dots to the back of the heart to also add dimension!

Have a wonderful week,
April

P.S. Congrats to Shannon and Amy! Thanks for sharing about your holiday traditions.  

Chicken / Turkey Divan Recipe

Now that we've feasted on our Thanksgiving turkey several ways, we STILL have left-overs! One of the recipes that my mother used to make with chicken or turkey was "Chicken Divan". Oh, I remember how I loved it. We really didn't think about fat or calories. Now things are different.

Because I've always loved this recipe, I searched and found a close approximation (tasty) to my mother's recipe. Although this is MUCH healthier! We'll be trying it tonight for dinner.

Hope you try it and enjoy it. Using left-overs in a completely different way will ensure your family doesn't get tired of the same old thing.

CHICKEN DIVAN

Once the signature dish of a New York restaurant, the Divan Parisienne, Chicken Divan became a party favorite. Here, its richer elements are streamlined, without sacrificing taste.

Makes 6 servings, about 1 1/3 cups each

ACTIVE TIME: 30 minutes  TOTAL TIME: 1 hour  EASE OF PREPARATION: Easy

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups diced leek, white and light green parts only (about 1 large)
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 14-ounce can reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup 1% milk
2 tablespoons dry sherry (see Ingredient note)
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 10-ounce boxes frozen chopped broccoli, thawed, or 1 pound broccoli crowns, chopped
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1/4 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 7-by-11-inch (2 quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Place chicken in a medium skillet or saucepan and add lightly salted water to cover. Bring to a simmer over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the center, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and slice into bite-size pieces.
3. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add leek and salt and cook, stirring often, until softened but not browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add flour; stir to coat. Add broth, milk, sherry, thyme and pepper and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Add broccoli; return to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in 1 /2 cup Parmesan, mayonnaise and mustard.
4. Spread half the broccoli mixture in the prepared baking dish. Top with the chicken, then the remaining broccoli mixture. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining 1 /2 cup Parmesan. Bake until bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving: 312 calories; 11 g fat (4 g sat, 4 g mono); 76 mg cholesterol; 19 g carbohydrate; 35 g protein; 4 g fiber; 652 mg sodium; 402 mg potassium.

Nutrition bonus: Vitamin C (70% daily value), Vitamin A (35% dv), Calcium (30% dv), Folate (19% dv).

1 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1/2 starch, 2 vegetable, 3 lean meat

TIP: To clean leeks: Trim roots and ragged tops. Slice leeks and place in plenty of water, then drain. Repeat a few times. The slices do not absorb water or lose flavor.

This recipe should leave you plenty of time for scrapbooking your holiday memories, or just having fun with family (or both!).

Recipe from: Eating Well website.

Direct to Paper (DTP) Technique

Perhaps you've heard of "Direct to Paper" or the "DTP" technique, but you didn't know how to do it? Or it sounded too intimidating? But DTP is VERY EASY! And it has limitless possibilities -- which we really love.

DTP is using your ink pads to ink your paper WITHOUT using a stamp image. You can use large or small ink pads, dye inks or pigment inks. Each different type of ink or size of pad will give you different looks. Why not take a small piece of paper and experiment?

We loved the Stampin'Up! stamp set "Bareback". It can be used for masculine cards or scrapbook pages, or try different colors and it works for girls too!

Instead of using a stamp image or printed paper for the background, the DTP technique was used. The card uses kraft-color cardstock, and we used a chocolate dye ink pad. We used a large size ink pad (about the size of your hand).

DTP Directions:

1) lay card on flat surface

2) hold ink pad and gently & randomly (turning ink pad) layer ink onto card front.

3) Use one or more colors for different looks.

4) try using pigment inks and heat embossing!

"Bareback" stamp set with DTP background. Does it look like "faux leather"? "Distressed and old paper"? We're not sure how to describe it!

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Web www.artgirlzscrappinattic.typepad.com www.artgirlzscrappinattic.com

Adorable "Coaster Album" -- Quick Gift idea!!

We normally scrap 12x12 pages, but lately we've found great joy in making smaller books. They go together much quicker, are less expensive to make, and can be given as gifts that the recipient can display on a shelf. 12x12 pages just don't lend themselves to sitting out on a shelf!

I was checking out SLIDE shows and came upon this SLIDE show for a mini chipboard book. It's a great book. Looks like it could make a great holiday gift. You could easily make several of these for grandparents. We also like how they have one picture on the right hand side, and the left side of the page is left for writing, embellishments, etc. They did a great job on this book!

Check it out!

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Product Review: Pebbles, Inc. RIBBON IRON

Did you ever think you'd need a RIBBON IRON? I didn't. But as I've collected more and more ribbon, I've found it more difficult to store them. And consequently, they have gotten folded and creased.

The folds and creases in the ribbons make tying bows difficult, if not just plain unattractive. Pebbles, Inc. has come out with the solution. A RIBBON IRON. It looks like my daughters hair straightening iron (flat iron), you just put the ribbon between the heating elements and squeeze ... and run the ribbon through to straighten it to better than new.

Now, you may have one of the flat irons used for hair, but I wouldn't try that. They get much hotter than the Pebbles RIBBON IRON. Be especially careful with ribbon like organdy which can melt under high heat. (*Tie organdy ribbon in a bow, run a heat tool over it and the ribbon will curl and melt slightly -- giving you an instant aged look).

We love our new RIBBON IRON. These irons are not expensive. We also see that you could probably straighten paper that has gotten creased. A problem all of us face.

Try one and let us know what YOU think about them.

Becky Higgins sketches -- and a great soup recipe!

As a blogger, I love to read other blogs -- so many different subjects. So much to read! I was reading and clicking links and I finally reached Becky Higgins blog site.

Wow! What an unexpected treat. I have enjoyed her sketches in Creating Keepsakes magazine for some time now. I like that she does not give you so much detail that you lose your own creativity. I have tried to copy that style for my sketches. Giving the "bones" and outline, but not filling in so much that you feel you need to put a flower here, ribbon there, etc. These are things that make a sketch a true sketch. I've been asked why I usually draw my sketches by hand, why they aren't so detailed to tell you EVERYTHING you need to know ... and I usually reply: sketches are for inspiration. The sketches that I have done (similar to those that Becky Higgins publishes) are for inspiration, not a perfect pattern for you to follow. Don't fear ... start slow. I have pages that are 5 years old, and one day I look at it, and see that I have something that will go in that empty space ... or I can add those cute "paw" brads that I just purchased and they are perfect for that pet page!

Becky has some videos of projects on her site. The quality of the videos has gotten much better, and it's kind of cute that her son (young son) is taping some of the projects and keeps moving the camera down ... down ... and Becky has to keep lifting it up! So totally human and real.

She had a recipe on her website a while ago. Since it has gotten chilly and I've been looking for quick and easy meals (aka: crock pot dinners), we decided to try the TACO SOUP recipe. My daughters were home from school that day and I left the recipe on the table with a list of stuff we already had in the cupboard. They went to the store, put everything in the crock pot. First, they said it didn't look too good all those cans of beans, corn, creamed corn, tomatoes etc. But as the cooking started, all the liquids and flavors started to mesh together. It's a very hearty soup. Good to fill up some teenagers! It reminded us of just our regular chili recipe, but soupier. And we don't usually have corn in our chili (although doesn't sound bad).

We rated the TACO SOUP recipe from Becky Higgins' blog as A+. Quick, easy, inexpensive. Everyone at the house loves it.

Sometimes you just have to try something new. New foods, new scrapbook sketches, new scrapbook or papercrafting products. We've got a product review for tomorrow.

We bought PEBBLES, Inc. Ribbon Iron. Yes, we did. At first we thought it was really crazy. But read our blog tomorrow to see what we think of the RIBBON IRON.

Crockpot Recipes -- giving you extra time for Scrapbooking

Today, I don't have a scrapbook, card or paper making entry. I was thinking about how the weather has finally turned cooler. Well, we went from 85 to 35 degrees. We're having hard freezes at night, chilly today. And there is no dinner already made. The kids will come home from school and their first thoughts will be ... we're gonna STARVE!

We have several no-fail CROCKPOT recipes. It's amazing that all 6 of us will eat this, and I never have leftovers no matter how much I can cram in that pot. I don't know where I got these recipes. They aren't really official recipes I guess.

You can use chicken breasts, chicken parts (no bones), beef roasts (the less expensive and less tender meats work well here) or even pork.

First "recipe": SWEET & SPICY

Ingredients:

* Meat (chicken, beef or pork), about 2 pounds

* 1 can Coke / Pepsi (NOT diet)

* I bottle Heinz chili sauce (this is like the stuff you would dip shrimp into).

Put meat into crockpot, add chili sauce and then pour the coke/pepsi on top. That's it. You can add a chopped onion or some garlic if you want. You will have a slightly sweet/tangy sauce that your meat is cooked in.

Second "recipe" -- CREAM OF ... (favorite meat)

Ingredients:

* Meat (we've used chicken, beef & pork loins);

* 2 cans "Cream of" soup. (we like cream of celery, or mushroom)

* about 1/2 can water

* one sweet onion (chopped), one clove of garlic (chopped).

Put meat in pot, mix water with cream of soup and pour over meat. Add onion & garlic.

Both of these meals can be cooked in the crockpot at HIGH for about 4-5 hours, or you could cook on LOW and put in before work and it's ready when you come home (8+ hours).

Recipe #2 we like to put over noodles, or make some mashed potatoes. They also love Recipe #1 with mashed potatoes. Of course, we have a "green" vegetable. Can't forget that.

Now that you've put your dinner in the crockpot, you have time to scrapbook, make holiday cards, make paper crafted gifts or SHOP (if you can stand the busy stores).

I'm sure there are some of you out there that have used these same (or variations) recipes. Do you have any other 2-3 ingredient crockpot recipes? Something even kids can put together!?

Happy Scrapbooking!