Scrap Swop

Hi there Bloglanders

For those of  you who think I've given up on the art journaling - no ways I'm still trying everything and will share once it's done.  In the meantime, I wanted to share with you something I've done more than a year ago. I haven't been blogging then and to tell you the truth, I totally forgot about it.  Yesterday, while browsing Pinterest one of my projects came up (somebody else blogged about it!) and I wanted to include it in my blog posts as well.

During 2011 Monika (a la iloveitall) organized an international scrap swop.  The idea was to link up with a partner from another country and swop some crafting goodies. This is how I met Mylene.  She's from France and can't understand Afrikaans (she wrote all may letters in French) so I'm not so sure she knows English that well either.  Doesn't really matter as we shared one big love - craft and our friend Google Translate did the rest.

So I sent off my package. It consisted of  2 mini packs of 6x6 papers and embellishments.(I actually cut 12x12 papers to size as I couldn't find anything smaller)  I tried to keep it local but that was a HUGE problem. I could only find one supplier of scrapbook paper (if you know of more, PLEASE let me know).

This is what they looked like before I wrapped them:

As I knew Mylene was crafty but did not know her exact taste, I went with a more African country garden pack and to market my beautiful Sunny South Africa with the other one in an African theme.

I wrapped them in unprinted tissue paper and added a bit of zing with labels and ribbon:

This one has a flower I made myself out of recycled goodies, ribbon, a belly band out of scrapbook paper from Fab Scraps and my signature tag.

A die cut out of old book paper, a stamped South African postmark, a handmade flag made out of beads and once again - my signature tag. You can buy the flags everywhere on our streets.  The locals make them and sell them to earn a small income to support (usually) extended families. 

I have a few pressies waiting to be mailed off and looking at Mylene's pictures inspired me to go out and buy some more flags and send them off  looking as inviting as these. All these pictures were taken by Mylene and I hope she doesn't mind that I used them but IMPERFECT ME totally forgot to photograph them before they were mailed off.

I really enjoyed this Scrap Swop and think we should organize something like this worldwide once a year.  It is great to know that scrapping is a universal "language".

Before I go - this is what the package looked like upon arrival in France:

Perfect page for art journaling - don't you think!

I'm off to find some colourful packaging to use in my projects.  Please come back to play and maybe we should start that yearly scrap swop - who's game?

Have a great Thursday and please come back to play.

Hybrid project - Jam labels

Good morning Bloglanders

My dining room table is still a mess as I'm not finished with Art Journaling (actually not giving up that easily).  I have finished the one I copied as I hate wasting stuff and today I'll be trying some Gesso (????). Never heard of it, never worked with it - today is the day!

In the meantime, I have been spending some time at my computer to get my backlog of work up to date but all work and no play makes IMPERFECT ME a dull girl.  I have whacked up a layout with pictures of my best friends but as I couldn't get a good one of Marilize, I had to save and close until I can find one / have one taken.  At least everything is done - journaling, the lot.

Still at my computer, I designed new labels for my apricot jam.  This is my husband's fave and I cook enough  to get him through the year as well as for gifts to friends and family. In total I made 64 jars - a staggering 16 litres of apricot jam! And this is what my  layout looks like:

I used dies from Spellbinders  to cut the circles and then glued it onto the lids of the jars. The digital papers and tag are from this "Season of change" freebie from Shannon NcNab (from Design House Digital):

Here is a close-up of the labels:

The same labels, just different dies and colors.

And my jam:

All this work has made me hungry - I'm off to have some toast (with apricot jam, of course!) and tea.  Have a great day and please come back to play.

My Life My Way - In the Beginning

Hi there Bloglanders

After yesterday's struggle to get my project loaded, I sort of felt like just skipping it altogether today.  BUT then the courier delivered my brand new Project Life goodies and here I am to share what I've got.

First of all, I love the goodies and as my parents normally gives money to all their children and grandchildren for Xmas, I decided to use mine to get my hands on the Clementine range. I'm very into "citrussy" stuff. Just a warning - I'm NOT committing to a double page spread for every week - it will be MY LIFE ME WAY. I'll incorporate some art journaling, my normal 12x12 layouts and some smaller bits that I want to record over the year. You will still be seeing my junk journal as I find it the best way to file away brochures and info.

And this is it:

I love the album's colour as well as the journaling cards.  I still don't like the English titles and words as I try to journal in my home language, Afrikaans. Maybe I can give that to someone who would use it. We'll see. I also received a huge stack of Becky Higgins page protectors but they are all the same and you know IMPERFECT ME - I need variety! Well, I have different ones in my stash and filed them all in an old 12x12 album where they can be easily accessed.  I don't know if the file is just old but it keeps looking shabby so I came up with a plan:

A piece of underwear elastic (!!!!), a felt butterfly and a very pink button.  The picture on the cover of the file is of my husband and his sister taken many, many moons ago. I also sorted through my stash and got hold of some 6x6, 6x12, A5 and A4 page protectors - I'm going to use what I have and they are all filed away in my brand new, old "page protector file".

And the first thing in my 2013 MY LIFE MY WAY album:

I couldn't resist taking a pic to share with you. As I won't be doing a double page a week, I hope that the whole 2013 will fit into one album as I only bought one. Hopefully, I would be able to get another one if needed.

Well, that's it.  I'll be back to share my projects with you. Please come back to play.

Hazel

xXx

First Try @ Art Journaling

Hi there Bloglanders

Hope you are having a sunshine yellow Monday! Mine is a bit blue as Blogger decided that she doesn't want to load my project for today. If you want to blame someone - she's the one. In the end Windows explore just ignored me and I ended up using Google. Well, at least I got it done.

Now for the project: I always try to do something new. Not always successful but at least I keep the experience (and sometimes the goodies). Well, art journaling will be my 2013 attempt at trying something new.

I can't believe it but I really suck at this. After I've wasted about a whole block of water color paper (and they don't come cheap) I decided to copy something and then move forward. Not even the copy was up to my expectations!

So, I tried my own idea - AGAIN!

Still not the best attempt that I've seen but I'm going to live with it and keep trying - maybe it has to grow on you.  This effort will go on the first page of MY LIFE MY WAY 2013.  Perfect for IMPERFECT ME.

And it's going to The Play Date Cafe challenge of the week.  These are their colors:

My blue was a bit too blue but that's because I couldn't decide on what type of paint to use. First I tried watercolors and then ended up using fabric dye and wax crayons.  Please, if any of u Bloglanders knows about a great tutorial, let me know!! I've seen some but they only show how to do it and not what to use.  I don't want to go out and buy more stuff - want to use what is in my stash. 

  

That's it from me.  I'll be back tomorrow to share some more of my projects. Please come back to play.

Hazel

xXx

PS. For my non SA Bloglanders:

HOOP = HOPE

VREDE = PEACE

VREUGDE = JOY

LIEFDE = LOVE

Mini Recipe File

Hi there Bloglanders

I hope you are having a thunderous Thursday. Only one more day to go for more time with family, friends and crafting fun. Today I want to share my mini recipe file with you.

My friend bought a waffle maker as a wedding gift for friends and asked me to make a booklet / card with waffle recipes to accompany her pressie. This is what I came up with:

I just printed out my fave waffle recipes, added a cardstock front and back page, a name and kept everything together with an office slider file clasp.  The newlyweds can just punch holes in their recipe book and add mine to it with the existing slider file clasp. I've done this in my own book and it works very well.

On the front page I added a title:

And my name and the date it was made to the back:

I always do this as it's important to me to tell people that I make things by hand especially for them.

I really think this has added that bit of OEMF to an ordinary pressie. Love how it turned out and best of all - it was small and flat enough to fit into the envelope with the card.

I'm off to my craft desk. Enjoy the rest of the day and please come back to play.



New Year's Resolutions Mini Book

Hi there Bloglanders

As promised - my New Year's Resolutions Mini Book:

I do my resolutions in categories - me, family, home, friends and work.  For each of these I choose where I want to improve. Every week I make a list in my dairy where I plan something small towards my goals.  Like this:

At least if I don't achieve them all, I can look back and see 52 small things that have been done. For this page in my diary, I used the offcuts from my Christmas wreath and just sewed it directly onto the page like a pocket. You can even slip a little note into the "fabric bag".  I used the same idea on one of the inside pages of my mini book:

And the other side:

Every year I also choose a word to live by and as I couldn't decided on one for 2013 - I chose 4. No rules for New Year's resolutions in the life of IMPERFECT ME. Want to see some more of the inside pages?

This mini book is rather small and I will be adding it to my New Year's Eve layout - I don't have a lot of pictures as I fell asleep long before midnight. Welcome to the life of IMPERFECT ME! So, you will be seeing it again right here on Play as U Go.

Have a great day and please come back to play as I've got lots of crafting fun to share with you.



Happy New Year, MME December challenge

Hi there Bloglanders

I hope you are having a wonderful 2013.  My wishes for you are HOPE, PEACE, JOY and LOVE. May this be your best year ever!

I wanted to share my 2013 resolutions mini book with you but as the MME December challenge ends today, I'm doing it first. 

These pictures were taken on the 30th of December and it's already filed away in my album.  At least I can start 2013 without a backlog.

Most of my supplies are from MME (The Sweetest thing) except for the paper doily as well as the newspaper bag in which the fish (vis in Afrikaans) and chips shop serves their fish.

And the inspiration:

That's it from me. Please check back tomorrow as I'll be sharing my new mini book.  Have a great day!