Mantelpiece love - Cheap decorating

Hey all,
Hope you are all well and staying dry in whatever part of the world you're in.
I seriously think I need to start building an Ark...this rain is just relentless!!

First of all...I'd like to announce the winner of the lucky lady that left a comment on my Scrap FX Blog Hop post...it is....

LAUREN!!

 So Lauren...if you could please email me at tisher_6@hotmail.com(no au) I will pop your prize in the mail ASAP.

I haven't drawn the lucky winner of my February competition I had running yet but that will be in my next post...so stay tuned.

Today I just want to share another happy spot I have in our house that I just love looking at...that cost me next to nothing to dress up.

It's our mantelpiece above the fireplace.

It's one of the focal points in our lounge room so I wanted to dress it up a bit...on a budget.

If you recall my last post...I upcycled the gorgeous old vintage clock which takes pride of place on the top shelf of the mantelpiece along with a wooden FAMILY sign and my collection of T's (the initial of our surname).

The bottom shelf however posed a little bit more of a problem as everytime I put something there my husband would deem it a fire hazard. I really wanted something pretty and something to fit into the FAMILY theme I have going on there when I came across the black frames you see. 

They were a set of 6 and the patterned paper you see in them was already there. So...instead of putting photos in them I simply put black vinyl Thickers in them to spell out the word FAMILY. 

Too easy! 

The set of frames cost me $5- from a discount store and I already had the letters at home but they cost around $5-6 dollars a packet so not a budget breaker.

I'm also a hopeless collector of vintage doilies and have an absolute barrel full. I'm always looking out for things to make with them so made this cute doily and burlap Shabby Chic banner to hang on the mantelpiece.

I love how this all looks now that I've hung the Home Sweet Home frame above it all:

The white really brightens up the dark wall beautifully.

So...here's another budget 'brighten up a corner in your house' idea for you.

Sew up some cute banners, upcycle something vintage and hunt around for some sweet little frames to play with.

It really doesn't have to cost a fortune to make your house a home.

Until next time,

Sharryn

xx

Scrap FX Blog Hop - FAIL!

Hi all,
Firstly, I must apologise for my lack of absence in the Scrap FX Blog Hop!
Unfortunately I became ill on Wednesday afternoon and spent a couple of days in hospital so missed the start of the Hop :(
The girls have all gone ahead as planned though and by now I hope you've been hopping around their blogs to check out the amazing techniques and projects they have created.

If not...here is a list of the girls blogs...simply click on the name to take you to their blog.
1. Michelle Logan 
2. Bellaidea
3. Kristine  
4. Michelle H
5. Misty
6. Rachelle
7. Scarlett
8. Scrap FX blog

Please be sure to read through the instructions carefully as there is a fabulous Scrap FX prize for those that play along.

Now I want to share what I made for the Scrap FX Blog Hop.
Lately I've been doing a lot of furniture restoration and upcycling of old, vintage findings.
A while back I found this old clock...I've wanted one of these FOREVER!
So I thought what better technique can I do for the hop than sharing an upcycled project using Scrap FX chipboard!

I got this old clock very cheap I thought I'd have a play and turn it into something pretty to sit on our fireplace mantelpiece.
Here's what I started with:

It cost me all of $5-.
To be honest it had me stumped for a while as I wanted to keep the original wood and shape.
So...I simply started by painting it white and once that was dry I gave it quite a heavy sanding to reveal that lovely old wood underneath.

I also wanted to retain the metal circle housing the numbers so I took the original hands off and measured the circle. I then adhered vintage music sheet paper to the centre and layered it with a vintage doily, some die cuts, some gorgeous FWAB pearl flourishes and some pretty flowers. Instead of replacing the original hands I painted and inked the awesome Scrap FX Steampunk Corner Hands that I added white brads too...to continue the metal look.

Once I was happy with the focal point; the face of the clock, I concentrated on either side. I created a cluster of embellishments similar to the face on the left side of the clock, again using die cuts, pearls, flowers and chipboard. In this cluster I've used the elegant Woman Cameo and a bird from the Birdies pack.


I wanted my clock to have a 'family' theme as this is what I already had on my mantelpiece so I came up with a bit of a play on words. I used the beautiful Family stencil layered with another bird from the Birdie pack and the word Time.

 

I just adore the way this old, vintage clock has turned out. It's exactly what I had in mind. Even more, I love the fact that I could showcase some of my favourite Scrap FX chipboard pieces on it.

Sometimes you really need to think outside the box when decorating and upcycling for the home. Who knew you could turn such a plain, boring, vintage clock into a gorgeous Shabby Chic time piece?

Next time you're considering restoring or upcycling a project...why not consider using your scrapbooking supplies on something you never thought you could. I'm sure you'll love it just as much as I love my clock.

Although my blog post is not 'officially' counted in the Scrap FX Blog Hop this time around, I'd love for you to leave a comment just to let me know you stopped by.

I'll have my own little Scrap FX prize for one lucky commenter.

You have till Tuesday midnight, EST.

Thanks for hopping by,

Sharryn 

xx

Scrap FX Blog Hop - Join in the fun!

Hi all,
Just a quick heads up to let you know Scrap FX are having a fabulous Blog Hop starting this Friday through till midnight on Monday!

 The girls have all put together some AWESOME projects for you and this Hop will concentrate on TECHNIQUES so make sure you come along to join in the fun and hopefully you might pick up a tip or two.

Of course, there will be a fabulous Scrap FX prize on offer so make sure you come along on Friday to see how you can be in the running to win it!

See you then!
Sharryn xx

Instant Love

Hi all,
I have a layout to share today that is very special to me.
These photos were taken by my son just after my grandson was born.
My first cuddle, my first kiss.
Words cannot express how proud I was and how I instantly fell in love with this tiny little baby boy.

I wanted a fresh but boyish colour scheme to scrap these flowers to represent him being a brand new newborn. The lime green, turquoise and splashes of brown were perfect for teaming with white for the soft, fresh look I was after.

I used Gesso and white ink on all my Scrap FX chipboard pieces and distressed the patterned papers and white cardstock background for added texture. I also used a scallop punch on the leftover white cardstock to tuck under the distressed cardstock border. I love this look.

Check out this awesome Scrap FX light bulb that I've layered over my title...isn't it just gorgeous?

Want to see more? Simply head over to the Scrap FX blog. Be sure to check out the 2013 Design Team call while you're there!

Chat soon,
Sharryn

Home Sweet Home - Upcycled frame

Hey all,
As promised previously, I have a new upcycled project to share.

At the moment I'm totally LOVING burlap. It's just gorgeous and is so versatile.
Burlap banners, burlap flowers..the list is endless and really...you're only limited to your own imagination with what you can create with it.

I've had a frame sitting around for ages trying to decide what I wanted to do with it. I picked it up from an Op Shop for $5- and when I finally decided on it's fate I realised just how old it must be as the whole glass front fell out and smashed everywhere...oops!
Luckily I didn't need the glass ;P

So with my new found love of burlap this is what I made to hang above our fireplace:

Here's how I made it.

Step 1.
Scout around for an old wooden frame from Op Shops. This is my frame as I purchased it. I was lucky it had a nice matting on the inside to frame my burlap and some gorgeous distressing on the wood.

Step 2.
Give your frame a nice whitewash. As my frame already had some awesome distress marks on it I didn't want to overdo the white paint. Once dry, give it a good sand. I sanded mine back to show the distress details.

Step 3.
While the wooden frame is drying, measure the size of the photo windows and cut burlap to fit. Once you've decided what you would like to print on the burlap open a program such as Microsoft Word and fiddle around with your sentiment until you're happy with it taking fonts into consideration of your final project.

Step 4. When you think you have it right do a test printing on normal office paper. Adhere strong double sided tape to the back of a piece of burlap and place it over the sentiment on the office paper ensuring it's sitting over where you want it to print.

Step 5. Run the office paper and the burlap piece through your print. PLEASE ENSURE you have set your printer to the right settings! This is very important!! Not all printers will have the capacity to print on burlap. Please read your printer manual first!

Step 6. Repeat the above printing steps on other pieces of burlap and slip them into your frame as required. Make some pretty burlap flowers with button centres and add other embellishments such as decorative pins. Adhere a cluster of flowers to the bottom right of your frame and one to the top left.

Step 7. Hang your new frame where it can be admired by all!

I'd love to show you the rest of my mantelpiece but there's another project sitting on it I just can't share at the moment. Be sure to come back soon to see!

I'd love to see your burlap creations...simply leave a link to your blog in my comments and I'll pop over for a look!

Sharryn xx

Everyday life and a DT call

Hi everyone!
Well it's that time of year when the kids are back to school and we're settling into our normal everyday routines. Sounds boring but when you look back on past years you'll notice that it's the everyday things that we treasure most. The simple things.

At the moment I'm at a bit of a crossroads deciding on what I want to do with myself this year. I'm contemplating looking for work outside of my photography business but not too sure what to do right now. I guess it'll come to me eventually though...I just need to get myself out there and put out some feelers.

In the mean time I'm still cleaning up after the school holidays and having everyone home for the past month. I tend to get stuck into projects when everyone is around me and I think I'll find if I look really hard that most of the cleaning up I have to do is mine! ;P

Last month at Scrap FX we had a 'free for all' where we could create projects with whatever we liked. This was great for me as I have so many favourite pieces stashed away that I couldn't decided what to use first! I decided on this gorgeous vintage telephone teamed with a photo of Rhiannon I took during a Pin-Up Girl photoshoot we had a while back. Isn't this little phone just adorable?

I just love it and so glad I've finally used it on a page. I have a bit of a thing with using cute chipboard like this...I tend to hoard it because it's way too nice to use LOL
But...it suited my layout perfectly:

I'm not sure whether it's just that time of year or if I'm subconsciously changing as I get older but I've been doing a fair bit of soul searching these past few weeks. I've always been a bit of a 'quote girl'...I just love quotes. Sometimes they sum up exactly how you're feeling when you can't put it into words yourself. So when I stumbled across this quote I immediately got a canvas out and started painting, stamping and masking and created my very first Mixed Media project.

It's only very simple but I'm really happy with it. I just went with the flow of what transpired from my mind to my hand and it all came together exactly as I'd envisaged it.
The quote is so beautiful yet so powerful:
There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul. - Ella Wheeler Wilcox.
It just resonates so much with me right now!

Speaking of Scrap FX...I have some VERY exciting news to share!
We are having a new DT call for 2013!!
Head on over to the blog and check out the requirements.

It's such an awesome company to design for and I just couldn't put into words how much I've loved being a part of the 2012 team but AWESOME quickly comes to mind!
So make sure you head over, read the requirements and give it a go...trust me...you won't be sorry!

Also, to celebrate my fabulous year with the Scrap FX DT...I'm having a giveaway! I have some gorgeous Scrap FX chipboard to share and all you have to do to be in the running to win is to become a Follower of my blog! Easy!! You have till the 28th of February. The winner will be announced soon after and I'll also try and get a photo of the prize up shortly.
So for all you lurkers out there...simply hit the Follow button and you'll be automatically eligible to win some Scrap FX goodness.

Until next time,
Sharryn xx

New month...new challenge

Hey guys,
There's a new challenge for February over at FWAB!
Make sure you enter to be eligible to win this gorgeous FWAB prize pack :

This month's challenge is to scrap a Back to School layout BUT you have homework to include on your page! You must at least include a date or year on your layout!

Head over to the FWAB blog to check out the DT's fabulous inspirational projects!
Your layout needs to be uploaded into the FWAB gallery by February 28th to be in the running for the fabbo prize!

Here's my latest layout I've created using the gorgeous FWAB Elise flourish:

Sharryn xx