I don't think of myself as someone who uses a ton of product on my pages. When I saw Laura's challenge to complete a page using only 1-2 products (photos and cardstock don't count), I thought I'd give it a try. Um, hard. Very hard. And I totally failed. Besides the cardstock and the photo I used: Paint (gesso and watercolor, but I'm counting "paint" as one item) White Pen Stamp & Ink (again, I guess this is two items, but I'm calling it one) Do you think I have to count the lace paper I used as a stencil... Read more →

It's the last dance. That's right, it's the final Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop challenge! This week we were challenged to use the Sizzix ScoreBoards XL Die - Treat Bag Toppers. Here's the project image from the website: Here are the pieces I got in the mail: And here's what I made: They're little gift bags for art supplies! I stitched the muslin bags and added the treat toppers to close them. Take a peek at each one: A long and skinny bag. What could be in it? Brushes! These are definitely one of my very favorite things to give... Read more →

I got an e-mail recently inquiring about subscribing to this blog, and I thought it would be good to answer it here as well. You can subscribe to this blog through a free blog reading service like Google Reader or you can subscribe via e-mail. I have subscription information in the right column of this blog. Simply type your e-mail address into the box and you get the blog content delivered to you daily! Quick and easy! ----> Despite the fact that I was feeling a bit under the weather, I had a lot of fun teaching my Altered Book... Read more →

Another new sketch from Pencil Lines. Here it is: And my interpretation: It's a little bit different color scheme than I normally go for. The pale pink paint I used for the background hasn't seen the light of day almost since I bought it. But I'm always up for something new, you know? This layout is made from lots of the leftovers from my desk. The book pages, the washi tape, the flowery heart shape, the doilies, and even the photo were all snips and snaps leftover from Holidays Handmade tutorials. The book page is the outside of the heart... Read more →

Wow! What a day 7! What a week! Weren't Liz's jigsaw pins the coolest? I'm tempted to steal a few pieces from a puzzle around here, but what would I do if someone actually tried to do the puzzle and discovered the missing pieces? Although I loved the commenter who said she was a teacher and always had puzzles that had a ton of missing pieces and how now she knew what to do with them! And Pia is so adorable, right? I was amazed by the suite of gifts she was able to put together on a very small... Read more →

This guest post is from Pia Utriainen. She has several fun ideas for homemade gifts from IKEA. And her saffron muffins look yummy! Christmas gifts - a thought of love? Hi! my name is Pia Utriainen I live in Sweden; stay at home mom for some years now, now I'm studying again. In Sweden every year we get to hear that the Christmas gift shopping is exceeding last year's with many millions, but thats not the point, or is it?! My idea of a perfect Christmas gift is something for all senses -- it's appealing for the eye, it's fun... Read more →

If you need a last minute gifts, here are some ideas for things that you can make in just a few hours - some even more quickly than that! Weekly Planner from Etsy Labs Watch the video below to find out how to turn this... ...into a fabulous little weekly planner book. If you follow this link you can download the file above at a printable size in a .pdf format! SCULLY NECKLACE Fantastic, easy to follow instructions at "The Craftivist Shakedown." And if you don't like skulls, you can substitute flowers or hearts or cupcakes! NECKLACE FROM RUINED TIGHTS... Read more →

Want a quick and easy gift to give? Have I got the tutorial for you! First you've got to do a basic tape transfer. Check out my video below for the how-to: (What do you think? My friend Kim has been bugging me forever to do one-minute technique videos and I finally did the first one! I think one of my 2011 resolutions is going to involve a whole lot more of these!) Once your tape transfer had dried, grab some fragments. Fragments are plastic pieces from Tim Holtz. You can get them with or without holes. These ones (as... Read more →

This guest post is from Liz Curtin. She is going to show you how to transform ordinary looking puzzle pieces into little works of wearable art! Perfect for gift giving or decking yourself out for a holiday party! Hi. My name is Liz Curtin and I am so honored to be guest posting on Julie’s fabulous blog. I teach a lot and get to make cool class samples as part of my job. This tutorial came from one such class. It’s a quick and easy project that anyone can do and it’s great as a last minute gift. Every time... Read more →

Day 6 already? Sniff, sniff. That means there's only one day left! How are you holding up? Exhausted? Excited? A little bit of both? Me too! Yvonne's amazing hand cutting impressed me! Wasn't her upcycled box beautiful? And I really like those cute rolled felt roses! Cuchy made me look at UTEE anew. I had never thought of inking up the edges of a piece of glass and then melting UTEE just on the edges. Man, totally brilliant! Love that tip! Monika's pocket pages are the coolest! But I really adore her idea for making a simple pad of paper... Read more →