Pixel Scrapper Blog Train: Enchanting Autumn

This month has been quite busy for me, so I didn't get much done for this month's blog train at Pixel Scrapper.  

I did manage to get some papers done, however, and I hope you can use them with the other creative offerings on the train which you can get here.

Download the papers below the preview.

Download here.

Thanks so much for coming by!  If you use these papers in a layout I'd love to see what you created!  Please leave a link and/or a comment,  I really appreciate knowing what you think!

Have a Crafty Day!

Happy 1st Day of School!

Several Cool Hours Of Ongoing Laughter!!

It's the first day of school in my area, so I made a set of cards for the three of my children who are going back.  My son told me about the acronym "Seven Crappy Hours Of Our Lives", and I knew I had to come up with something better!  Honestly, none of my kids appreciated these cards, but I had a blast making them!

It feels so good to get back into crafting mode, as well as on a schedule again.  I've been quite sick for several weeks, and finally I feel like I'm on the mend.  I've never gotten such a nasty cold in the middle of August!

How about a calendar?  Yup, made a calendar for September, with you guessed it, a back to school theme.

Once again I printed it out at 8in.x8in.  Last month I made a stand to put my calendars on in this post.  So far it's working out well and I don't miss having a larger 12in.x12in. calendar.

I found a great place to learn Photoshop techniques called Digitalscrapper.com.  They have plenty of free videos, and you can also sign up for Premier which gives you even more videos as well as digital goodies!  This is where I learned to create folded corners, which I tried out on this calendar.  It's an easy technique, but I want to practice a bit more.

Of course with today being the first day of school, I had to take some pictures of my two Middle Schoolers getting on the bus.  They did not want any part of it, but how could they deprive their mother of a scrapbooking opportunity?  I had already made a layout using files from SVGCuts.com.  Making a digital page this way is so quick and easy!  I put this layout together much the same way I did the one in this post.  Now the memory of my daughter's first day of Middle School and my son's first day of 8th grade is on a page.

I decided to include the countdown calendar I made from a previous post in this layout because I wanted to try blending two photos together.  Believe it or not, that was the most time consuming part of creating this page.

That's it for now.  Let me know what you think, or if you have any questions.  Until next time.....
Have a Crafty Day!

Items Used:
 Acronym cards:
 Lunchbag digital paper from Sassy Designs
 Kraft Solid digital paper from Weekend at Home Kit by Kate Hadfield
 Georgia-Pacific white cardstock
 Bebas (Font)
 SNF Sketchy (A+)
 Advert (Font- Are you ready...)

 September Calendar:
 Off To School digital kit from Fancy Pants
 LD Writer's Cramp (Font(colored in)- September, 2015)
 Arial (Font- Numbers)

 Layout:
 Make The Cut
 Miss Baker's Classroom SVG Kit
 School Rules digital collection by Lori Whitlock
 LD Charming Bold (Font-Middle)
 LD Chalky (Font-6th & 8th grade)
 LD Hand (Font- Journaling)




 

5 Cute Back to School Projects from SVGCuts

Do you have kids going back to school this week?  Do you know any teachers?  Why not try some of these cute back to school themed projects from SVGCuts.com?  You'll definitely have fun making them! 

I will list the projects from simplest to more difficult to create.  This is purely subjective, as some of you may find some things harder and others easier than I did.  Even when I had a bit of difficulty putting things together, I was happy with the outcome, so give them a try!  All of the links to the kits these projects are in will be listed at the end.

Every one can use a card, even if it isn't for back to school but to simply send a greeting to your child's teacher or someone you know who's a teacher.

This card was really quick to put together.  Just add a little embossing and it goes a long way!

Believe it or not, this backpack took less than five minutes to assemble!

My daughter suggested I needed something to go inside, and what did she suggest?  Books, of course!  I made some mini notebooks to stick inside, but you could fill it with any goodies for your child.

Here's a nice gift any teacher would appreciate!

This project was quite easy, but making the cards was a little time consuming, so don't start this if you're in a rush!  I made six notecards and six envelopes suitable for a teacher to send a note.  Add your teacher's name to the front and you have a super personalized gift!

Planning to give your teacher or student a little something that needs a box?  This one is perfect!

This adorable apple opens up so you can place a sweet gift inside!  Since this one is three dimensional, it takes a little more patience to put together.  It is still pretty easy, and the wow factor is awesome!  The main thing to remember is to take your time while gluing, holding each piece and letting the glue dry as you go.

Last but not least, another gift box any student or teacher would love.

Of all the projects listed here, the pencil box was the most difficult for me to put together.  Putting the wood part onto the pencil was a challenge, but overall I'm very happy with the outcome.  

I added a scalloped edge for a little more embellishment at the top since I didn't want to use the numbers that came with this file.  The black part of the apple on the front is cut from chalkboard paper which was perfect for writing the sentiment.

So, that's it!  Five really cute projects you'll have a blast making for a teacher or student!  Imagine how impressed the recipients will be!

Which projects are you making for back to school this year?  Please tell me about them!  If you have any questions about the projects listed here, ask in the comments and I'll do my best to answer!

SVG Kits Used: 
Back To School (Books on front of backpack)
Back to the Books (Backpack, Cards for teacher)
Miss Baker's Classroom (Apple)
School Days (Apple card, Pencil box)

Have a Crafty Day! 

*I'm an affiliate for SVGCuts because I love them and YOU will too!
 

Back 2 School is Coming! (Perpetual Countdown Flip Calendar Tutorial)

Already?

I know, I know.  The kids don't want to hear it (at least mine don't!).  It's that time again. Time to get back to the books and get your study on!  With this in mind, I thought I'd create a countdown, so the kids can mentally prepare and be ready bright and early on that first day.

This flip calendar is a spin off of the Christmas advent flip calendar I wrote about in this post.  The main difference between them is the size.  I chose to make this one much wider so it would stand up better.

Creating the base:

You'll need a 5"w x12"h piece of sturdy cardstock (I used Silhouette chipboard) for the base.  Score it at 5", 6" and 7".  Cut two pieces of patterned cardstock to 5"x5".  If you have a binding machine, you can punch your holes in the base and the patterned pieces, then glue the patterned pieces to the base.  You can always use binder rings to bind the top of your base if you don't have a binding machine.

Score at 5", 6", and 7"

Creating the numbers and rectangles:

Create 20 rectangles sized 2.25"wx2.875"h with numbers 0-9.  I used Photoshop to make a grid with guidelines for cutting.  Any software such as Silhouette Studio or Make The Cut can also accomplish this task.  When placing your numbers be sure to leave enough space at the top of your rectangles for binding holes.  I could not fit all of the numbers on an 8.5x11 page, so I put the nines on another sheet. 

Make sure to print and cut two sets and don't forget number 9!

Create your "weeks until" rectangle sized 4.75"wx1.75"h in the same way, then print and cut it out.

If you don't want to go through the process of creating a computer generated document, just cut your rectangles with your paper trimmer and add stickers for the letters and numbers.

Punch your binding holes into the numbered rectangles, making sure not to put too many at a time into your binding machine.  I found out the hard way that doing so will jam your machine!

You may want the ability to use days or months instead of weeks until an event.  To solve this, put a magnet on the front of your calendar and another on the backside of the front to hold the bottom piece in place.  Surprisingly, the magnets will hold it quite well.

Two magnets holding bottom piece in place.  Yeah, I know, terrible picture!

Since you may want this to be an all occasion countdown, cut a rectangle of chalkboard vinyl or dry erase material and put it on the "weeks until" rectangle (you can also laminate it) so you can write whatever occasion you want, then adhere it to the base using magnets or glue. 

How about Christmas?

Then again, you could make the entire rectangle from the chalkboard vinyl and forget about the magnets.  Yeah, that might be easier, huh?

Binding:

If you're using a binding machine, place the back on first, then the front, and finally the numbered rectangles as shown in the picture below.  Make sure your numbers are in the correct order, but even if they aren't, this is a perpetual calendar so it's not the end of the world.

  

The "ugly" side

Bind your O rings according to your machine's directions.  

Now it's time to enjoy your new countdown flip calendar!  But don't enjoy it too much, your kids won't appreciate it!

Here's how mine turned out:

Sorry to break it to you kiddos!

You could use this countdown for any occasion, not just for taunting your kids with a back to school reminder!

I had a lot of fun creating this back to school countdown, and I hope you enjoy making one too!  If you do, please leave a link in the comments.  I'd love to see it!  Got questions?  Ask in the comments and I'll do my best to answer.  Thanks for sticking with me and checking out my countdown calendar!

Items Used:
Photoshop
Silhouette Chipboard
Textured Basics Paper Pad by Craftsmith
Georgia Pacific White Cardstock
1/2" O Rings by Zutter
Cinch Binding Machine
Bebas Neue (font)

Have a Crafty Day!
 

Quick & Easy Cards Using Doodlebats from Lettering Delights

DB Foliage

What are doodlebats, exactly?  If you don't already know, doodlebats, or dingbats as they are also called, are a font that you install on your computer that has pictures for characters instead of letters.  I find I don't use these as much as I should, so I've made some simple cards using some doodlebats from Lettering Delights.  You can also find many on the internet for free.

Using Make The Cut, I created an 8.5 x11 inch rectangle to make a template to create two 4.25 x 5.5 inch cards.  Next I double clicked on the doodlebat image (much easier than having to figure out which letter corresponds to which image), resized it and put it where I wanted it on my template.

Once your cards are set up it's time to print.  If you want to be extra sure it will print correctly on your particular printer, go to File>Print Options then check 'show paper on mat'. This is how it will look:

For my printer (Epson Artisan 835), I found that choosing the borderless option made true 4.5 x 5.5  cards, which is what I wanted.  Once the cards were printed, I scored down the middle of the paper to create the fold, then cut the paper in half to separate them.  I rounded the corners for a finishing touch.

Here are some of my cards:

DB Giving Thanks & DB Thanksgiving Art

DB Giving Thanks

DB Foliage & DB Greeting Goodies

DB Giving Thanks & DB Thanksgiving Art

I really had a bit of fun making these!  I think I prefer the colored ones to the black ones, but those could be used for the kids to color.  These cards are so quick, they'd be a real time saver if you had to do a bunch, or you could print them out ahead of time and have a card whenever you needed one.

This is just one way to use the doodlebats on your computer.  What other ways can you think of?  I think I may have a few more up my sleeve.  Until then...

Here's what I used:
Make The Cut Software
DB Giving Thanks (Free for Nov. 2014 at Lettering Delights)
DB Thanksgiving Art
DB Foliage
DB Greeting Goodies
LDJ Thankful ('Autumn')
Pristina ('Give Thanks')
American Crafts White Cardstock  

Put those doodlebats to use and Have A Crafty Day!