Spooky Halloween Purse Album

Can you believe October is upon us?! Pretty soon the leaves will be changing pretty hues and spiced cider will be warming cool hands. To celebrate this change of season, I have started making more fall related layouts and albums. This particular album was designed to be a purse. Twelve pages of yummy vintage goodies fill this album to it's brim. One of my favorite additions is the old letter I found at a local flea market. I was so surprised to see an old dried up bouquet tucked carefully inside. How perfectly it ties in to the eerie feel of the album!

This album is for sale on Ebay where you can see many more pictures!

Recipe for this album:
Crafty Secrets Halloween Scraps
Crafty Secrets Halloween Image Journal Notes
Haunted paper line by My Minds Eye
Black cardstock: American Crafts
Vintage goodies: letter; lace, doilies, buttons, ribbon, music sheets
Bling: Prima
Pins: Maya Road
Embossing Folders: Tim Holtz & Cuttlebug
Punches: Martha & EK Success

Help TWAG Reach 300 Facebook Fans!

Do you have a Facebook account? Want to win five handmade paper piecings by some amazing paper artists! Then visit our TWAG fan page today! Become a fan and leave a comment no later than the 30th!

Here is the contest giveaway information:

Just click on either picture or follow this link to go to our Facebook page. Leave a comment and become a fan!

I will be giving away this adorable card that you may have seen earlier - he was a blue ribbon winner at my local county fair!




See you on FB!

The Love of My Life...

A little while ago, my hubby and I had our pictures taken by Marcie and Dave from m & d photography. I was looking around and noticed that our pictures were all the same - head shots of the two of us. I was in the mood for something more funky and fun and was so lucky to have such talented individuals capture those memories for us. We had such a blast the entire time! Here is a little glimpse of our shoot....

hope you enjoy!

Crafty Secrets DT challenge September - Halloween

(Click on images for close-ups)

Are you ready for this month's Crafty Secrets Design Team Challenge?! The September theme was "Halloween". There is just something about vintage Halloween images that make me smile. And the designs from Crafty Secrets will not disappoint - the only problem is - choosing which ones to use! Lol!

For this challenge, I have created a mini coffin album (well it is about eleven inches tall - but only 8 pages - front to back). I cut each page in a thick black cardstock from American Crafts. Then layered it with designer paper from Making Memories called "Spook Alley" slightly smaller than the actual page. The paper and adorable vintage images from this year's Crafty Secrets Halloween Creative Scraps could not have blended more perfectly! I was able to fit a million different cuts with some still to spare to make a variety of cards! I also used Crafty Secrets Halloween acrylic stamps throughout the album. Using stazon white ink on some pages and a glue stamp pad on the other (I LOVED doing this! Just stamp, add glitter, and viola! Texture and bling!)

If you are interested in the svg or traceable coffin pattern to make your own spooky album, just "follow" my blog and drop me an email (pieces_of_home@yahoo.com)

Want to see what the other Design Team Members created for this month's Challenge? Skip on over to their blogs to see their gorgeous Halloween creations!

Vicki Chrisman Team Leader
Pam Hooten
Heidi Blankenship
Marisa Grosson
Linda Duke
Michele Kovack
Melissa Phillips
Flo from France
Julie Campbell
Heartwarming Vintage blog
Crafty Secrets Website

Thanks for stopping by!

Pages 2 & 3

Here are just a few of the adorable stamps I used from the Halloween stamp set. They work wonderfully for borders!

Pages 4 & 5

Pages 6 & 7

Here you can see the Crafty Secrets spiderweb stamp using a glue stamp pad - then a black and orange glitter sprinkled on top. I love how detailed it is and the glitter just ads that special pop!

Crafty Secrets - Little Blessings

I can't wait for you to see all the new Crafty Secrets products Sandy has been designing! You may have seen the new ones - hot off the press - last week on the Crafty Secrets blog. But if you haven't, here is a sneak peek of one of the new adorable creative scraps called "Little Blessings". Like all the new scraps, this one is double sided and has so many cute images that it is hard to choose which ones to use! So, for this layout, I decided to use one of the bigger scenes located on the back. I just love how it creates such a lovely, soft focal point for the entire piece. This particular image sports splashes of color, but is mainly neutral - which is great for adding your own color palette through embellishments!

I then loaded the layout with vintage laces, ribbons, doilies, bits and baubles from all of my flea market finds - and some handed down from my own family.

Simple & Soft

I just LOVE the "Sew Nice" scraps from Crafty Secrets. I know there are so so many to love - but there is just something about this particular line that I love. So many of the images just make me smile! The back side is my favorite - I love the soft colors! They make such an amazing focal point - and all you have to do is add a splash of color with your embellishments.

Spooktacular

Isn't this layout just "boo-tiful"? I really enjoyed using simply black and off white throughout this design. Many antique bits and baubles on this one. Including a few pieces of the vintage lace and doilies I shared with you the other day from my wonderful mom! Vintage music sheets and single sheet of paper from MME's "Haunted" line swim with all the antique buttons and flowers. The "Witching Hour" cut was taken from the Halloween Creative Scraps by Crafty Secrets. Doesn't it just bring the entire layout together beautifully? I just LOVE these double sided scraps. The possibilities are endless! Just cut and attach! I can't wait to share a little something with you that I've been making with these adorable cuts - next Monday of course for Crafty Secrets DT monthly challenge.

Enjoy!

Sweet Kettle Corn

I had my first bag of kettle corn at the fair yesterday and what can I say - I'm so addicted! As I spend the day at home, I kept finding my mind (well mouth) watering over the thought of those sweet, crunchy kernels. So I did a little research and found a quick and easy recipe that you are sure to love! This sweet snack will be so yummy in your little ones lunchboxes, snacking at your soccer games, or even family movie night. If you've never had kettle corn before....give this recipe a try!

Kettle Corn (I used a stock pot with lid)

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup popcorn kernels
1/4 cup sugar
fine grain sea salt (optional)

Heat oil over medium heat until melted. Add three popcorn kernels, cover with a lid and wait and listen until all three kernels have popped. Add the rest of the popcorn kernels, shake to distribute then sprinkle sugar evenly over the kernels. Cover with lid and listen for popping. As soon as the kernels start to pop, shake pot gently back and forth over the burner, lifting it up and shaking from time to time, until the popping slows to every 2 to 3 seconds. As soon as the popping slows, remove pan from heat and immediately dump kernels into a large bowl. Allow to cool and use a spoon to break clumps apart.

Voila!

Hope this satisfies your craving too!