Here's the triple treat for Design Team favourites - Miss Michelle...

 The lovely Michelle Mohr

 

from Southern NSW gave me plenty to think about when I asked her about her favourite product from 2020.

2020 cant have been all bad right??? There are plenty of good things that have come out of 2020 !!!

Here's what Michelle had to say...

STENCILS!!!!!!! Michelle fell in love with stencils throughout 2020...and when pushed on a particular brand she said "All of them!!!"

This response at first made me smile because if you know Michelle, you know that she does nothing by half! So I decided to look back through the Scrap Of Your Life blog as well as Michelle's blog and I found that she likes a LOT of stencils all of which are available at the Scrap Of Your Life store.

There is such a generous array of stencils in the Scrap Of Your Life store, including but not limited to The Crafter's Workshop, Dusty Attic, Kaisercraft, Dylusions, Uniquely Creative, Taylored Expressions, Scrap FX and last but definitely not least, Tim Holtz/Ranger.

If you're in a stencilly sorta mood and would like to update your stencil collection prior to the arrival of The Crafters Workshop Stencil Butter, then please feel free to place your order today!!!

Further to our favourite products of 2020 theme...here's what Miss Mel has to say...

 So when I asked the beautiful Melanie Parnell,

 

 Design Team Member from Hills District in NSW, the question of "What's your favourite product from 2020?" she had no hesitation whatsoever!!!

Straight away she had her favourite 2020 product as well as her favourite partner for her chosen product.

Without a shadow of doubt, Mel's top pic was Vicki Boutin Mixed Media Watercolour Markers and then to team these up, Mel's second favourite is Stamperia's Heavy Body Paste - which is like a thick, heavy texture paste! The Scrap Of Your Life shop is currently out of stock on this Heavy Body Paste, but there are boxes and boxes of product winging its way to us as we speak so don't be afraid to ask Julie when she expects this will arrive!!!

The Vicki Boutin Mixed Media Watercolour Markers are second to none and after seeing Mel's at a craft day mid way through 2020, I decided that I simply had to have them ... I just say that I wasnt disappointed at all...they are sublime!!! The colours are subtle in some and vibrant in others and they glide on like a hot knife through butter!!!!

If you have a birthday coming up or even Mothers Day if you can wait that long, then these markers are a must have!!!

 

Happy Crafting xoxo

Do YOU have a most favourite product for 2020? Miss Kate from the Design Team definitely does ...

 Yes I know 2020 was a year - and one that most likely, most of us have good reason to want to put it behind us and to kick off into 2021 and hope like hades that we can only get better from here on in.

So, I did a quick run around the Design Team and asked them what their favourite product for 2020 was...It certainly was interesting to see their responses and to look back and remember them using these products on their projects in 2020.

The first DT Member that I spoke to was the lovely Kate Liekefett from Sunshine Coast in Queensland.

Kate's response to the question "What is your favourite product from 2020?" was rapid and definite.

Without a doubt, her favourite item was the Nuvo Mica Mists range - but certainly, the project that stands out most from Kate's 2020 work with this range of mists is "Perfect You". 

This project seamlessly fuses together many colours from the NUVO Mica Mists range but the stand out, kick ass colour that really makes this page POP is the Violet Lustre.

What's new on your 2021 radar?

 As I type this question, my mind is literally SWIMMING with ideas and thoughts of things that I have seen that I'm desperate to delve further into ...but then there's also that excitement at the amount of things that I haven't yet discovered which will unveil themselves gradually (or not so gradually) throughout the coming days and months...

One thing that I literally discovered yesterday - and then showed to Julie - and it's SO NEW that even Julie was unaware of it at the time...

*Insert drum roll please*

 STENCIL BUTTER?!?!?!?!?! 

Is there ANYTHING that could be considered more decadent and more LOVELY than this product right here???? Just the name of the product lends itself to thoughts of cool butter literally dissipating in your fingertips as the warmth of your skin warms the butter and returns it to its once liquid state!!!!! 

All of that is not to even mention the delicious colours with a brightness and boldness that I haven't seen since the days when the Tattered Angels brought out the first sprays and mists for our crafting pleasure. 

 Delicious, spreadable Stencil Butter has a shimmer and shine that spreads easily with a palette knife. It has the body of a soft modeling paste that holds its peaks and valleys for texture and interest and cleans easily with water (be sure to rinse your tools immediately after use. 

 These ten colours are a broad range of necessary shades that will complement any background stenciling that you choose to create for yourself! Available in easy to use 2 ounce jars. Dries in 15-30 minutes depending on how thickly applied. 

 As I type this, Julie is looking into the availability of these little pretties and will hopefully have them in your hot little hands faster than you can say "Is there a pre-order for Stencil Butters?"

Well stay tuned to find out!

Do YOU have a OLW for 2021?

This year I became aware of a 'thing' started by Ali Edwards some time ago called One Little Word...

The idea behind this is that at the start of the Calendar year, you choose one word that will be your ideal word for throughout the year. Sort of like a motto if you like...some people chop and change before they eventually settle on the one word that resonates with them the most or if you're a bit of a rule breaker like me, you'll have TWO little words.

My two little words are a little bit of a carry over from the month of December 2020 as I was going through a bit of a rough patch and my mantra became "CHOOSE HAPPY". Reminding myself over and over to choose the happy in life helped me stay away from the negativity that can sometimes be associated with the difficult times in life!

As you can see within the image above, there are so many likely candidates for the One Little Word concept that it can become truly overwhelming in the process leading up to your personal choice, but once you have found and decided upon YOUR word, its almost cathartic and that in turn gives way to feelings of relief and in a way, achievement, paving the way for a year where you can potentially focus on your one little word and reap the benefits that this mindset will ultimately deliver.

Some people dedicate planners to this effort and others create a journal to allow them to reflect on their journey throughout the year using their One Little Word at the fore of happenings during the year.

If you'd like to visit the creator of One Little Word, you can find her at Ali Edwards Designs.

Happy Crafting xoxo

What's hot in 2021...

 Wow Ladies!!!!! It's been a minute since I posted anything here for you to peruse - I'm thinking December 15 LAST YEAR!!!

I've been away and spent some quality time with family and friends, I've crafted away many an hour, I've tried some very new things to me and I've been pretty happy with the results that I've achieved. Fun fact - I actually completed a project over the break that I started buying the bits n pieces for about 8 - 9 years ago!!!!! I should hang my head in shame that it's taken me THAT LONG to gather up enough confidence to go ahead with it.

Confidence or lack thereof is always a big barrier for so many of us but it's SUCH a good feeling when you forge through the fog and doubt and actually complete that thing that you've long been dreaming of!

BUT, this post isn't all about what was or whatever - but it's also about what is to BE...

I was mucking around on google this morning and was curious about what's hot in the crafting arena for 2021. There are some random things on the Pinterest What's Hot for 2021...but one of those random things was using cement...

I know it would be messy and getting cement through the narrow neck of an old wine bottle might be more of a challenge than what you'd expect, but HOW MUCH FUN would this be???

You could make these concrete vases and leave them raw once the concrete has set or you could even drag out the Posca Pens and decorate them to your hearts' content!!!

What's your random pick for crafting in 2021 going to look like?

Happy Crafting...

January Mood Board - Pretty Sunsets

 Here

The first Mood Board for 2021. Inspired by pretty sunsets.

Link to the album is here https://www.facebook.com/media/set/... and there is also a sketch to give you a little inspiration. There is a free downloadable cut out sheet in both JPG and PDF format.

I would love to see more entries .. so get crafting and join in.. It doesn't have to be a scrapbook layout either, it can be mixed media project or card!

Incorporate the technique - Water colouring into this month's Mood Board.