Neith"s Crafty Creations - image created with Club Scrap DigiDeluxe Refresh and Serengeti Kits

Monday, June 29, 2009

10 Cards Using Herringbone and the ALCM Idea Deck

Club Scrap has tons of great ideas to help you with card making! Every month the Club Stamp Rap (full color newsletter that comes with the monthly Club Stamp membership kit) includes images of 15 great cards that are often created by members, using that month's kit. There are often tips and techniques scattered throughout the Sr, Jr, Club Stamp, and Digital Raps that either deal directly with cards or translate easily to them. There is also a full set of free instructions available to members to help them make 15 cards using the optional monthly Greeting to Go side order. And then there are countless videos in the Cinema with more ideas... And finally, the awesome ALCM (Assembly line Card Making) Idea Deck which has 52 idea cards with full cutting instructions so that you can transform a few sheets of 12x12 and/or 8.5x11 papers into a set of coordinating cards! A sampling of these cards were given away for free during the last PSL (Pro Scrapping League, a multi-week challenge to work as teams to create layouts and/or cards, competing for prizes and discounts... a brand new Summer Camp PSL is opening up on July 6th)!

Today, I'm going to share 2 new cards that I made using the Herringbone Technique that was just featured in a recent CS Cinema episode and some cards that I made during the last PSL using the 5 of Hearts card from the ALCM deck and papers from the Vintage Choice Collection! Enjoy!

Happy Birthday Card, Wings with Herringbone by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Concrete Jungle 6/09 - Birthday CSt WM Stamp; Milestones 12/08 - Plain Paper in Soft White; Wings 7/05 - Plain Paper in Apricot, Brown, Dark Blue, Light Blue, and Mustard; Hybrid Ink Pad in Earth; Herringbone Technique;
Carpet Tape;

The Herringbone Technique was features in the Henna 5/09 Club Stamp Rap and there is also a great video up in Club Scrap's cinema that teaches the technique! Basically you take thin scraps of cardstock and adhere them to carpet tape (from the hardware store) or another equally sticky surface, and lay them out in a Herringbone-like pattern then trim away! very simple and lovely! Use plain cardstock, printed papers, or stamp all over them before cutting... use left over scraps or cut up some extra paper, anything goes! It's a really great way to use up tiny scrap from your projects! I wound up diving into my ziplock baggies with old scraps in them and trimmed the strips to some skinnier pieces!

Birthday Card, Collections and Herringbone Technique by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Concrete Jungle 6/09 - Birthday CSt WM Stamp; Collections 6/06 - Plain Paper in Red, Saddle Brown, Tan, and Teal;
Ranger: Adirondack Dye Ink Pad - Stream;
Carpet Tape;

5 of Hearts ALCM Cards using Vintage Choice DIY papers by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Idea Deck Assembly Line Card Making - 5 of Hearts; Vintage Choice Kit: DIY Green Block Print, DIY Light Tan; Extra Extra 6/04 - UM; Rhapsody 3/07 - UM; Refresh 2/07 - UM;
Ranger: Adirondack Dye Ink Pads - Latte, Starfish Green, Meadow; Distress Ink Pad - Walnut Stain;

What do two sheets of 12x12 paper do when thrown into a PSL final challenge? Why, pair up with the Assembly Line Cardmaking Idea Deck's 5 of Hearts and become a quick set of 4 cards, of course! And I love this recipe since it creates cards which fit into standard invitation sized envelopes while also working quite easily with printed papers and stamps! Or toss some simple embellishments onto the smaller rectangle to finish out the cards!

5 of Hearts ALCM Cards using Vintage Choice DIY papers by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Idea Deck Assembly Line Card Making - 5 of Hearts; Vintage Choice Kit: DIY Purple Print, Time & Space Mauve Dust; Ivory Elegance - UM; Chapter One UM; Unknown Flowers and Brads; FFC Ways of Stamping - UM; Palette Hybrid Ink Pad - Noir Black;
Colorbox: Unknown Purple Ink;

Stay tuned for some more ALCM Idea Deck cards, coming soon!

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Trash Menagerie at PEM with 2 Digital Layouts

The Peabody Essex Museum has a new and wonderful exhibit called Trash Menagerie which features an array of animal sculptures made from recycled and reclaimed materials! They have a few themed special events still coming up and the exhibit will be on display until May 1, 2010! Below are just a few pieces from the installation! http://pem.org/exhibitions/exhibition.php?id=83

Sulphur Blue Smeck digital layout by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Concrete Jungle 6/09 - QDDL3; Digital Inked Edges Vol 1 - 4x4, 12x12c;

I layered up a border by inverting the color on the Quick Drop Digital Layout and added back the original color by pasting it over the brown version and using Ctrl-G after laying inked borders over the background.

Sulphur Blue Smeck, 2005, Michelle Stitzlein, mixed junk, 62x84x11 inches.

"Recycling is not only one of the most creative arts but it also needs some imagination and lots of skills to perfect. Michelle Stitzlein is an artist who has both these creative skills along with tons of patience. Michelle has created a dazzling “Moth” series of recycled artwork made from items including car license plates, car parts, piano keys, broken china ware, tin cans, electric wire and bottle caps among other stuff that might just be rusting in your garage." http://www.ecofriend.org/entry/eco-arts-michelle-stitzlein-s-recycled-moth-sculptures/

Plastiquarium digital layout by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Concrete Jungle 6/09 - Template3; Perfect Ten 2009 - Plain5, Print8, Print10, Tag22;
Font: Santana Black;

Raggedtailed Dragon Fish, 2007, David Edgar, 30 x 64 x 9 inches, mixed recycled plastic. (I still need to get the title of the larger piece.)

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

8 Layouts of my Son

Sebek Collage
In honor of his birthday, I'm posting 8 recent layouts of my son, over the years! Please forgive me for the photos of layouts, I took them quickly when I had just made them and planned to scan them in, but I want to get them posted today! Half are paper and the other half are digital layouts, enjoy!

Tattoo by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Centennial - Classic ALSB #6;
Scrapbook Takeout - Antique Autumn 11/08 - Chipboard Stickers; Pot Pourri 7/08 - Thickers Glitter Chipboard Alphabet Roller Rink Tangerine Gold; Eclectica 6/08 - Maya Road Stitched Ribbon;

These first three layouts are from the waiting period before his little sisters were born, when he got to take a visit to my parent's house to hang out, get tattooed, and take a night visit to the beach!

Whats Up by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Retreat 2006 - Let Me Count the Way Design Classic ALSB;
Scrapbook Takeout: Antique Autumn 11/08 - Felt Bird Shapes, Basic Grey Designer Rub Ons; Eclectica 6/08 - American Crafts Vinyl Stickers in Orange Sprinkles;
Ranger: Distress Ink Pad - Frayed Burlap;

Stargazing July 3 1999 by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Time & Space ALSB;
Scrapbook Takeout: Parisian Vintage Chic 5/08 - Thickers Velvet in Cream; Ribbon;
Basic Grey: Distressing Kit (used on photo edges to file away some of the image);

Birthday Cake for Sebek by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Bugs Remix 08 - ALSB #12 (includes Generations, Interior Designs, Retreat Cream, plus Bugs artwork);

Sebek and his friends were busy checking out his birthday cake complete with a painted on puzzle scene and handmade chocolate critters on top! You've got to love his shushing while they sang to him!

Mothers Day Speech 2006 by Neith Juch


Club Scrap Digital Kits: Common Threads 3/09 - Print1, EMBXtra1, EMBXtra2, EMBXtra3; Gimme a Ring 1/09 - Template2, EMBFiber09; Mirror Mirror 11/08 - Plain4; Serengeti 11/07 - CS06, CS08; PSL 09 Prize - 4b;

It was such an unexpected treat to hear Sebek read his essay about me in front of his entire class!

Arret by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Academy 8/07 Digital Kit; Digital Inked Edges Vol. 1; Assembly Line Scrapbooking Idea Deck Vol. 2 - 9 of Hearts Left;

Not only was Montreal's Botanical Gardens filled with lovely plants and butterflies, but there was a small school playset in the middle of the greenhouse and Sebek had a blast in it!

Urban Legend by Neith Juch


Gimme a Ring Template; Inked Edges Vol 1, Artifacts BBF;

On out last trip to Montreal we were surprised by an array of street art stenciled onto the sidewalks and crosswalks! Since Sebek is named after the Egyptian crocodile god, I had to scrap this photo right away! I used the photograph of the title as my background "paper" and added the crocodile back in, creeping over the frame from the Gimme a Ring digital template!

Floating Paperclips by Neith Juch


Club Scrap Digital: Avant Garde 3/08 - DPaper11, DPaper12, Tag63, Tag80, Tag87, Xtra74; Be Still 9/07 - Xtra02;
Font: Clingy;

On our last visit to the Boston Museum of Science, we got to perform experiments! Here's one shot where Sebek and Jay successfully floated a paperclip on top of a glass of water!

Monday, June 22, 2009

5 Layouts From my Childhood and my Children's

Here are a few layouts that I completed earlier, some digital, some physical! You may notice that I create 8.5"x11" layouts for my life before kids... I just love being able to work in different sizes without having to create mini books all the time. So, years ago I decided to scrap in 12"x12" for my main albums and 8.5"x11" as my "Book of Me" and have never regretted it! Plus, for those older photos, I'll often only have one image per event or just smaller photographs!

My 10th Birthday with Local Friends by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: Bridges 2/08 - Dark Brown Plain; Academy 8/07 - Tan 8.5x11 Print; Autumn Splendor 10/04 - Dark Brown Plain;
Scrapbook Takeout: Journal - Scenic Route Save the Date Chipboard Circles;
Cuttlebug: Funky Circle Frames;
Ranger: Adirondack Ink Pad - Espresso; Distress Ink Pad - Walnut Stain;
Zig: Memory Writer - Chocolate;

When I saw the "Save the Date" and "Good Times" chipboard shapes, I just had to break out those "funky circle" die cuts and get playing! The slightly brown tinted photograph worked well with an assortment of brown cardstock, inks, and embellishments for a fun layout!

Disney World, 1988 by Neith Juch

Club Scrap: Chapter One 6/07 - Blue Print, Blue Plain, Stencil;
Scrapbook Takeout: Tell Your Story 3/08 - Jenni Bowlin Printed Tickets; 7 Gypsies 97% Complete Stickers Inspiration, Heidi Swapp Journaling Spots Mini Stars and Moons;
Making Memories - Transparency;

I just loved taking this photo and layering up a frame for it, starting with a transparency and cardstock, then overlapping stickers and embellishments, and text printed and painted onto the background paper! And I worked to pick up the main colors from the photo, blues, pink, white, and grey

Fish Bait ALSB Layout by Neith Juch


Club Scrap: ALSB Idea Deck Vol 2 - Jack of Spades (left); Cruisin' 8/08 - Translucent Print, Light Coral, Black, Stickers;

Forgive me for the quality of this photo, but it really helps to show off the sparkles in the papers from the Cruisin' 8/08 kit! All but the translucent paper have the full sparkles when you look at them in real life... but using them for fishing photos wasn't what I expected! However I think it worked out great! I moved the photos just a little from the plan on the ALSB recipe card and added some skinny scrap strips to echo the strips in my daughters' jackets and love how it all fell into place! And the girls always have a blast at the Cub Scout Fishing Derby, never afraid to get their hands dirty!

Hula Hooping Digital Layout by Neith Juch


Club Scrap Digital Kits: Common Threads 3/09 - Plain1, Template4; Gimme a Ring 1/09 - Print6; Cruisin' 8/08 - DP05; Fizz 1/07 - Trans22; Wheel & Sprocket 8/06 - Trans25; Let Me Count the Way Digi Demo - Paper04; Digi Inked Edges Vol. 1 - 12x12b;

The template from the Common Threads 3/09 Digital Kit is SO FUN! You can alter the style of each layer and cut all kinds of papers and colors to fill them, move things all around to your heart's content! It just screamed out Hula Hoops to me! With our vibrant photos of the Hawaiian themed weekend on the ski slopes with the Girl Scouts, I just had to go bright and load on the colors! I grabbed the shadow from another photo of my daughter hula-hooping and added it in turquoise to the background, then added a few digital stamps from some favorite past kits and digitally inked edges to finish off the layout.

Quack!  Are we having fun now! Digital Layout by Neith Juch


Club Scrap Digital: Artifacts 2/09 - Plain5; Gimme a Ring 1/09 - Plain2; Bistro 7/07 - CS07, CS08; Surf's Up! 7/06 - Trans17, Trans22; Oh Baby - Trans09, Trans24; Inked Edges Vol 1 - 12x12c;

For this layout, I was inspired by Kim B's layouts in the 3/09 DigiRaps with all of the great vertical lines and small photos with embellishments sharing on vertical strip! And with the cartoony duck photo prop, I had to get a little cartoony on my layout! I switched the photo to black and white and upped the contrast, then gave it a bold black border stroke. I found the great dotted frame from Surf's Up and selected the border for the frame, stroked it in a new layer, and moved it to the side! When I grabbed the dotted line and text images, I also applied a heavy border stroke to them in black, but chose to ink the edges of the paper strips. I grabbed the great duck stamp and "colored" it in with the background yellow paper as the final touch!


Saturday, June 20, 2009

Sumi Painting ATC Cards and Display


Pure and Simple Sumi Painting ATCs and Display Stand by Neith Juch


When the April 2009 Pure & Simple SR Kit came out it included a Sumi paintbrush and some instructions, in the Scrap Rap, to help you learn a few different traditional Sumi designs! I tried my hand at a few of them, and some others, and some came out great, while others were OK ;) It'll take some getting used to, but it's such a fun thing to try and the black watercolor paint is incredible for very solid abstract patterns that remind me of the Zentangles that we did at the 2008 Main Retreat! And, since the Club Stamp kit included an awesome ATC Art Display (complete with an easel and a tacky mount to stick ATCs on and off of the display whenever you feel like it), I just had to put it together! I think that I'll add a few small mirrored tiles/rhinestones to the display, but I'm loving solid black with the rich texture for now!

Now, I'm anxiously waiting for my shipment of the two brand new Crafter Classics, Nature's Wonders in vibrant fucshia, lime, and lavendar... plus Color in Black & White in bold primaries (and b&w, of course)!

Club Scrap - Pure & Simple 4/09: Niji Black Watercolor Tube, Sumi Paintbrush, SR Scrap Rap painting instructions, Borders & Backgrounds UM Stamps, CSt UM Stamps, CSt Project ATC Art Display, Spring Green, Black, Grey, and White Papers;
Ranger - Nick Bantock Collection: Chartreuse Leaf; Adirondack Dye Ink: Citrus, Lettuce; Adirondack Pigment Ink: Pitch Black;

Pure and Simple Sumi Painting ATCs by Neith Juch

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

The ICA Boston Art Lab on Concrete Jungle Digital


The ICA Boston Art Lab on Concrete Jungle Digital by Neith Juch

The ICA Boston Art Lab
No trip to the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston could be complete without some time in the Art Lab! On this visit we got to experiment with family and self portraits while being inspired by the creativity of other visitors! This month's kit had the perfect designs and colors to complement our photos, from bold pop icons to vibrant color schemes, and a slightly subdued digital print created the perfect backdrop!

http://www.icaboston.org 4/25/09

Club Scrap: Concrete Jungle 6/09 Digital Sr Kit - DigiBG1, Font13, FontA2, FontC, FontI2, Font02, Print6, Sticker04, WMCS; Inked Edges Vol 1 - 12x12b;

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Current FFC Kits (as of 9/10/09)

Update: Two brand new Crafter Classics are out! Color in Black & White and Nature's Wonders! Check out a sneak preview on Karen's Club Scrap Blog!

I'm sorry that I don't yet have images loaded for each of these, but I'm working on it! For those that aren't already on my blog, I've linked to the Club Scrap Gallerias and blog posts of the kits wherever it is possible! If you need to see anything else, contact me because I may have some in progress, subpar, images that I can send! I'll be trying to get each of these kits up on my blog as soon as I can!

Current FFC Exclusive 6 Page ALSB Kits:
  • Amber Waves
  • Bonsai Garden
  • Chapter One
  • Desert Rose
  • Dream in Indigo (low stock)
  • Extra! Extra! (low stock)
  • Grape Jelly (low stock)
  • Musical (aka Red Holiday)
  • Phone a Friend
  • Plum & Vine (aka Sugar Plum Holiday)
  • Tropical Paradise (low stock)
  • Workbench
Current FFC Crafter Classics Kits:
Additional Current FFC Exclusives:
Other Available Past and/or Exclusive Kits:





Updated 9/10/09

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Help Kids Help Kids Charity Bazaar


Beaded Charm Bracelets by Uatchet, Nekhebet, and Neith Juch



On Saturday, May 9th, my girls and I will be at the Help Kids Help Kids Charity Bazaar in the Framingham Circle Furniture from 10AM until 1PM! The store is at 235 Worcester Road (Rt 9W) in Framingham, MA and there will be mutliple groups of children selling their handmade items to raise money for charities of their choice! It's a wonderful way to pick up a last minute Mother's Day gift, to treat your kids to something in the midst of the Mother's Day weekend, and so much more!

Our table will feature a few dozen handmade beaded charm bracelets (mostly using acrylic, metal, and fimo beads/charms instead of glass and stone), marine life earrings and pendants, and some yummy baked goods! Maybe even a little more! My daughters and their friends designed each of the bracelets and I've been working hard to finish assembling them!

Beaded Charm Bracelets by Uatchet, Nekhebet, and Neith Juch



100% of the sales at our table will go to The Lowell Wish Project which is a wonderful charity that helps provide new and used goods for many other charities, homeless shelters, emergency items in the event of fires and illnesses, families transitioning to apartments from the shelters, and so much more! We felt that it was really important to try and help families that are suffering during these ever-shifting economical times and we've seen families that have benefited directly from this organization, so we knew that we had to raise money for them!

We'd love to see some of you there, or learn about the projects that you are doing in your own family to help make a difference! Thanks!


Beaded Charm Bracelets by Uatchet, Nekhebet, and Neith Juch

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Card Donation Drive for Soldiers to Use


Way to Go Card by Neith Juch/

Club Scrap: Mirror Mirror - Greetings to Go, UM Stamps; Ranger: Adirondack Inks - Espresso, Stonewashed, Pesto; Seashells Inks - Starfish Green; Glossy Paper;

My daughters and I are working on a bunch of packages to send overseas to soldiers serving the Army in Iraq! We've got three wonderful guys who are currently serving there and have promised to distribute all of our goodies to as many fellow soldiers as they can and to be sure and share with those who don't get many care packages from home. But beyond the regular treats, we thought of something else that they could really use! We're sending them unused handmade cards that they can in turn send home to their loved ones, and they don't have to pay postage, the military does!

We're looking for more people who would love to send us cards for them... Very good themes include I Miss You, ILove You, Happy Birthday, ThankYou, blank cards, etc. We'd also love a few Father's Day cards to send this month! Everything is welcome, but maybe refrain from 20 glittering pink butterflies in a row as most of the people sending these will be men who may shy away from picking those cards in front of their platoon! :) But plenty have little girls at home, still!

If we have more than these guys can handle, I'm talking to them about trying to maybe set up a basketful at their post office with a freebie sign so that everyone there can scoop them up! And we'll get the girls' Brownie troop more involved in collecting additional cards, stationary, and soldiers to help distribute in Iraq & Afghanistan! I already have a huge thank you to DanaM, Cheryl M, and Pam G for already helping!

Just send me an email at neithj@gmail.com and I'll send you out our mailing address!

Thanks!

Neith

Thinking of You card by Neith Juch

Club Scrap: Paisley 3/06 - papers; FFC You're Invited - UM; Club Scrap Hybrid Ink Pad - Earth; Assembly Line Cardmaking - 9 of Spades;

Monday, February 2, 2009

Artifacts Digital Layouts


Happy Memories Digital Layout by Neith Juch
Club Scrap: Artifacts 2/09 Digital - BBF07, Print2, Print3, Tag02, Xtra02;

Happy Memories Digital Layout by Neith Juch


Do you have any photos of a fun subject in motion, but the photo is just a tad bit dull? Pump it up in PSE by layering the photo on top of itself and using Blending Style >> Multiply on it a few times. Your colors and shadows will become more vivid and give that photo some kick! You can also apply the same tricks to the great frame style Xtra from this kit (I used Xtra02 to frame my photo) and even the prints! You can even capitalize on the art's style by applying Effects >> Drop Shadows >> Fill/Outline to a die cut section of print and text for a fun shadow!

Millipede Digital Layout by Neith Juch
Club Scrap: Artifacts 2/09 Digital - Plain5, Print1, Tag07, Xtra01, Xtra04-10, Xtra12, BBFont; My own inked edges;



The little framed Xtras in this month's kit are incredibly handy! Use them as backdrops for your text, layer them up with various blending styles to tone down and pump up one another, and even supersize them for incredible watercolor-style borders for your page and page elements! By using the blending modes of Multiply or Overlay, you'll wind up not only with incredible borders, but it will also help you create a more even toned layout, and let you have some fun while you are at it!

Plus, the swirls in so many of the kits elements seemed like the perfect match for this Giant African Millipede that we met recently!