Balzer Designs

Live with Prima: April 5

I'm so excited about my next class! And I hope that you will be too. I am not a fast scrapper. I am slooooooooooow. But on Monday, April 5 at 2pm EST (GMT -5), we are going to make *3* 12x12 layouts in just 2 hours! Start to finish and in real time! As you can imagine, it took me way more than 2 hours to come up with these layouts. But that's the beauty of it! I've done all the thinking for you. I picked out the supplies, the photo sizes, the design, the techniques...and now all you have... Read more →

Round Robin Scrapbooking

This is my all time favorite crop game ever. Here's how it works: You gather a group of participants. You take a photo of everyone together. You print one copy of the photo for each participant (i.e. 5 players, 5 photos). Each participant starts with the photo and a piece of neutral cardstock (black, kraft, white, gray). Every fifteen minutes the layouts are passed to the left. When you receive a layout, you may add or take away anything you want. However you must leave the journaling to the last person to receive the layout. The last layout you work... Read more →

Miscellaneous Monday

Thank you for all of the wonderful comments about my apron! I've been breaking it in and it's starting to get that inky lived in feeling! I had a crazy weekend filled with lots of fun and friends and plenty of work too! I taught my Distress Ink Explorations class at the Ink Pad on Friday night. It was my very first time teaching in the store (as opposed to over at the Westbeth Community Center where they host their weekend classes). It was a tight squeeze and a lot of fun because there were lots of lovely and talented... Read more →

A New Apron

I am a messy creator. I get paint, glue, ink, etc. all over everything, including the chest area of every single shirt I own. Because I'm a larger gal, regular aprons don't do a great job covering up that bust area. Very frustrating. So several years ago, I made myself an apron that addressed that problem. It has been my constant companion and suffered through plenty of messes. It's made from plain cotton fabric, however. Yesterday, I decided that I wanted to upgrade to something a little sturdier -- better at resisting wet messes. Tada! It's made from printed canvas.... Read more →

A Quick Card

I recently received a Sizzix Big Shot Die Cutting Machine and some dies as a gift. (Lucky me, huh?) I wanted to make a thank you card for the gift giver. Here it is: The hearts and embossed pattern are both from Sizzix. (I have to admit that I used a punch for the butterflies.) I put the finished card through my typewriter to add the sentiment. It was hard to photograph this card because the metal (okay, tinfoil) really catches the light. Here's another photo to try and capture some of the beautiful embossing detail: I had to wash... Read more →

Sometimes You Just Have to Create

I came home from a long night of auditions on Friday. Probably got home around 12:45am. I chatted with my husband and my mother (visiting for the weekend) and when they went to bed around 2am, I sat down in my studio. I couldn't go to sleep, even though I was tired. I just *needed* to create. There are times that I feel like a junkie. I can't stop thinking about it, can't go more than a day without it. Sometimes I just have to create. I didn't want to work on an assignment or a project that required step-by-step... Read more →

Reminder: Live with Prima Today!

Just a quick reminder: Come and check me out on the Live with Prima site at 2pm EST today! Here's a little time chart for you (if you click on it, it will get bigger): This is what we're making: Plus, I'll share a preview of the next kit and a few other tricks and treats! There will be giveaways too! The class will likely be about two hours, so stop by even if you can't make it to the beginning! Hope to see you there! Read more →

Pencil Lines: Sketch 179

A new sketch went up at Pencil Lines yesterday: And here is my interpretation: This is how I used to scrap before I got involved with design teams and using product and all that stuff. This layout is cardstock, paint, ink, masking tape, and pen. Love that! Here are the details: Painted masking tape ruffle. Love the texture! (I used stencils from The Crafter's Workshop, btw.) I hand cut the title on this one from black cardstock. That's it. Super simple and it made me very happy to make! Thanks for stopping by! Read more →

I'm a Cover Girl!

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! I had a very happy mail day! That's my layout (and my face) smack dab in the middle of the cover (the one with the hearts) of Scrapbooking m.m.! This is my very first time ever being on the cover of a magazine! Yay! Yay! Yay! I'm grinning from ear to ear! They sent a second issue which has two more of my layouts and a ton of my photos from CHA. It's a beautiful magazine (though I wish I could read Swedish). It's a more artsy aesthetic than most American magazines, so it's fun to see! And something... Read more →

Bits and Pieces

Randomness today. I did a quick watercolor portrait of my friend Cheryl. She was crafting and not paying attention, so it was a stealthy act. I kept peeking at her out of the corner of my eye. I'm sure she thought I was creepy and crazy! The painting is not quite right. Definitely more sour looking than she is, but I'm just mucking around trying to get it figured out. I made a fun canvas yesterday: It's quite large. Probably one of the biggest I've ever made at 16x20. Here are some of the details: I'm also in the midst... Read more →