Paper. Scissors. Chocolate. Louise Williams

A perfect combination...

I created this layout with some gorgeous Prima combined with some of the amazingly detailled Twiddleybitz chipboard. Thought I'd give you a quick rundown on how I put it together too :)

Supplies:
Prima #843106 Londonderry - Parlor Games
Prima #841478 Flights of Fancy - Miss Pretty
Prima #843427 Romantique - Hilary
Prima #890735 Resin - Mini Windows
Prima #543358 Summer Carnation - Wisteria
Prima #548858 Corine Collection
Prima # bulk roses
Prima #551346 Say it in Crystals
Twiddleybitz BAS013 Bag of Love
Twiddleybitz GAR001 Garden Flower Tower
Twiddleybitz FRA006 Fancy Vine Frame
Twiddleybitz WOR039 Love Word
Twiddleybitz ALPHA005C Itty Bitty Alphabet - Chocolate
Digital frames downloaded from internet
Stickles
Dimensional Magic
Tattered Angels Glimmer Glam

Instructions:

1. Cut a 4" strip off the left and right edges of the Hilary paper and swap them over so that the border is running in the middle. Cut a 6" strip from the middle of the Parlor Games paper and punch the long edges using a decorative punch. Adhere using double sided tape to recreate a 12" square page.
2. Use paint or a Tim Holtz distress stain (in picket fence) the Twiddleybitz Garden Flower Tower and Fancy Vine Frame. Adhere the Garden Flower Tower into place in the middle of the strip.
3. Cut the Fancy Vine Frame in half and adhere into place with one piece at the top right and one at the lower left of the tower.
4. Adhere your digital frames and photos into place, using foam tape to raise the frames up from the photos.
5. Adhere the resin window into place at the top of the tower.
6. Adhere the vine into place.
7. Colour the hearts and the Love word with the Glimmer Glam, finish with dimensional magic and adhere into place when dry.
8. Create a banner out of the middle cutoff strip of the Hilary paper, folding the edges for dimension. Adhere into place and attach the lettering.
9. Adhere the other flowers into place. Cut out some butterflies from the Miss Pretty paper, fold and shape the wings for dimension and adhere. Finish with the Prima crystals and some kindyglitz on the roses.

Thanks for looking

L :)

 

 

And the RAK winner is...

Congratulations Bridget!

 

Lisa, your layout is lovely. I love the multi coloured title, super clever. The Twiddleybitz lamps are gorgeous too, shabbu chic style perfect for a masculine layout. Thanks for the inspiration.
Hugs

Posted by: Bridget | November 06, 2011 at 07:17 PM

 

Even though you called me Lisa I'll forgive ya... lol. Email me at [email protected] with your address details and I'll get the RAK out to you!

Louise x

Hippity Hop... we're almost there...

Hiya... got sore feet yet? all that hopping giving you the urge for an easter egg? :D

Well you should've landed here from the talented Lisa Kamphuis's blog, and with the amazing inspiration the other girls have already given you'll be wanting my ---> TWIDDLEYBITZ <--- RAK huh? It's a goodie and could be yours for just leaving a comment with the secret word if only you could find it... (think red)... I'll do the draw on Monday morning so get commenting. By the way, the word you're needing from Lisa's blog is WITH not THE... ahem... technical glitches...

Remember along the way you MUST collect the secret words - these will be highlighted in each angels post and when you put them together (they will be given in order!) it will create a sentence :) Then send a personal message with this sentence to Sandra Wallace on the Twiddleybitz ning to be in the running for a cool prize! Every Twiddley Angel has a RAK along the way as well and keep checking back to both our Facebook page and the Ning site for more RAKS! Seriously cool stuff to be winning so hope you've been hopping!

So what have I been creating for ya? after a bit of a break with illness the mojo is back and I made this layout full of Twiddley goodness...

I used some Tim Holtz stain in picket fence for the... fence... (go figure) and then inked and used distressing embossing powder over the top. The lamppost got a faded ink treatment and the delivery wording was perfect over the handmade scroll. There's a wee heart on a wiggly post that I inked in two colours and finished with some dimensional magic too. The Postbox is a digital download I printed out as a frame and the rest of the layout is full of punched, stamped and fussy cut touches that add that bit of detail I adore so much. Finally the letters were from Prima and I painted, inked and finished those off with dimensional magic and some glitter to co-ordinate it with the layout.

And a couple of closeups:

Twiddleybitz pieces used:

• LP002 - Triple Lamp Post
• ALPHA005C - Itty Bitty Alphabet Chocolate
• GAT010 - Paris Lamp Post Fence
• WBF003 - Whimsy Bird Friends Elements

Next up is the awesome Jennifer Hodges (did you catch her scratch and sniff tutorial?) at 7pm AEST, 9pm NZ, 6.30pm SA, 4pm WA and don't forget the final word of the secret quote wil be given at 8pm AEST over on the ning site. Also if you've just jumped on in here on the end the full schedule is on the ning site too so you can hop back to the beginning and not miss anything!

Oh and for those planning on visiting the Sydney Papercraft Festival on Sunday well we have another special for you...

Be the first of 20 to go to the Twiddleybitz Booth and say these Secret words..

**TWIDDLEYBITZ ROCKS SYDNEY!!**

and we will give you a piece of Twiddleybitz! Too Easy!
BUT
(of course there is a but, lol)
you must be a member of the Twiddleybitz Ning and it is only on the Sunday. ;-)

So keep hopping and I hope you've enjoyed being a bunny so far

L x

It was indeed... an Indulgence...

Fabulous. That's really all I can say about the retreat. What a fabulous group of scrappers eating fabulous food with fabulous classes and such a positive, yep.. you guessed it... fabulous vibe all weekend. Thank you all who came and helped make it so successful.

Debbie did a phenomenal job with the catering - I have never eaten so well at a retreat and her buffet table at the creepy crop was just amazing... see what I mean?

We were also treated to a beautiful card buffet by Liz Hicks... stunning work and everyone loved helping themselves to the Prima!!

And I taught this layout class filled with Prima goodness:

Then during the creepy crop we had a mask competition... this was mine with yes, more Prima... lol

And there we go... we're already into full on planning for next year's "A Vintage Indulgence" and will be releasing the registration form and details as soon as I've confirmed the venue and dates. I'm expecting us to fill up fairly quickly next year judging by the feedback from this one so make sure you keep an eye out for updates.

Righto... onto other things...

Something super exciting is happening this weekend!!

 

Starting on Friday the 4th of November the Twiddleybitz DT are having a bloghop.
And not just any ol' run of the mill bloghop.....

oh no...
uh uh!!

We are having a  RAKAMANIA BLOG HOP!!

Each of the DT members are putting up a RAK for you to win and also showing you some gorgeous work on their blogs in the process.
It all starts on Friday November the 4th at 5pm (AEST)

So keep an eye out on the Ning for more details and the schedule, because that is where the

RAKamania Blog Hop will start!!

And not only will there be prizes from the DT members on the actual Hop, but there will also be prizes to be won on the Ning during the weekend and also on Facebook.

Like our page on Facebook to keep up to date with what is happening on the hop!!
Twiddleybitz on FaceBook

We also have prizes on offer for those of you going to the Paper Crafts Festival in Penrith on Sunday of that same weekend. Make sure to pop into the Ning to see how you can win some Twiddleybitz just for stopping by the Twiddleybitz booth at the Show and saying hello. :-)

We do hope you will join us for what we are sure will be a fun and inspiring and prize packed RAKamania Blog Hop...!

L x

A bit of steampunk and a video or 3...

I've been Shimmerzing with the new Enamelz and it's lurve...

For this layout I took a tonne of Twiddleybitz goodness and embossed my lil heart out with the new Enamelz and finished off with some touches of Prima and adhesive pearls and swirls from Flourish with a Bling. I've done a recent guest DT spot for FWAB and love their products - head over and take a look at their blog.

And even a video of how I created it...

On another note I've been rather excited to have my first items being shown on the Prima stand at CHA! I spotted them in a couple of video's of the new stuff and sooooo wish I could've seen the stand in real life, it looked amazing!

In this first one I have a christmas layout of Joshie on an easel rrrriiiggghhhht at the end JUST as the batteries ran out... I'll show the full layout on here as soon as I get the ok.

In this one you can see my clear acrylic album which obviously quite took her fancy as she went back to it again for a good look through it! yay!!

My little bit of excitement for the day. :)

Did I share these? I created them for Aussie Scrap Source recently and they were made for my mum (they made her cry when she got them)... we all got to do some awesome 7 Gypsies trays and memory jars and I love how different everyone's were... don't you love the picture of my mum (number 12) in the top left? I'm really happy with how this turned out - I used Pink Paislee papers and some gorgeous Twiddleybitz chippie embossed with, you guessed it, Shimmerz Enamelz. :D

And this is the matching memory jar. I handmade the cotton spools using rolled up paper and some punched out circles all glued together then wrapped with muslin and secured with some pins from Jillibean Soup. Easy and effective!

Saw an interesting thing on tv tonight about Fodmap's... it could definitely be the cause of many of the issues I have with my Crohn's disease especially when I eat right! It makes me so frustrated that I can't diet and exercise to lose weight like everyone else as when I start eating fruit and vegetables too regularly it sets it all off and I'm back to square one. It's looking like going gluten free and cutting out high fodmap foods could definitely help so I'll do a bit more research on it and give it a go. I miss having some energy and just feeling well. I'm not sick, I'm not suffering but I have had ongoing issues with my disease which has otherwise been in remission up until a few months ago, and with two young children and lots to do I refuse to spend my life sitting on the couch. Stay tuned...

ArtLab is in 2 weeks and I can't wait! I have boxes of goodies for everyone and it's all come together like a plan no less!! it's going to be so much fun, can't wait to share the photos afterwards.

There are places available for the retreat at the end of October too, make sure you register as it's going to be sooo much fun! I'm teaching a Prima class (with Twiddleybitz and Shimmerz) and Liz's card buffet is looking awesome. Roll on October.. but not too fast because of course in September I'll be in Brissy teaching at the Papercrafts Festival! Make sure you book in for all 3 workshops too (myself, Jane Clark and Janine Koczwara are teaching)... you don't want to miss out on these ones either.

Righto, that's enough for today :)

L :) x

2 weeks to go...

yep, officially school holiday time here in New Zealand. I wish I could say I was one of those mother's that relished every. little. second. that I spend with my squealing, fighting, loud (but gorgeous) children. But I'm sorry, I'm not up for that particular prize in this years Mother of the Year awards ceremony. I love my kids and I love to spend time with them, but as someone who works from home I find having them with me 24/7 and trying to achieve anything is not only frustrating and stressful, it's also a no brainer that it's just not gonna happen. I have so much to do right now too. This month is CRAZY busy, more so than any other month and having them home means I'm just seeing my workpile increase and me slipping a little more behind with it hour by hour.

However - (whinge over) - I love both my kids more than anything else in this world and if they force me to take a break (from what really isn't that important in the scheme of things) to watch them chase each other on their bikes or build "the most amazing train track ever", then I'm grateful they want me to watch. I know there'll come a time when they really won't care if I see them or not, or want me there at all. So I'm trying to chill out a little and take the time to just be with them, have them around, let them climb up on my knee and take over my computer mouse as I'm trying to type an important email. Coz I love them, and just need to remind myself sometimes about what's really important. It's easy to get caught up in deadlines and worrying, but I want them to remember that they had a mother that took the time just to sit with them and watch the Gummy Bear video for the MILLIONTH time.

On that note of taking the time I took Joshie to his first school disco the other night. He was so excited and nervous to be going, he got himself all dressed in what he decided to wear (and yes I know he's well overdue for a haircut, he'll get one over the holidays!) and we headed out. When we got there it was quietish (we were there bang on time when it started),so we purchased the obligatory glow finger thingy and he wandered around looking for his friends.

He knew that at disco's you were there to dance so of course when the first song started he took off onto the dance floor to bust some moves.

All the other kids were just running around though, and when he realised he became very self conscious and didn't want to dance again. Despite the fact that as the evening wore on most of the other kids were all dancing and having fun, Josh tended to just wander around looking for people he knew and being sad about the fact "it wasn't what he expected".

I told him that now he'd been to one, he'd know what to expect next time but how proud I was of him that he'd gotten up to dance (it was a big thing for him as he's quite shy about people watching him do something like that). He's keen to go to another one and just have fun with his friends without the expectation of having to dance so I'm glad the experience didn't put him off.

The usual question of what to do with the kids in the holidays has already arisen (and it was only day 1)... lol... Both my boys love to create and draw though so I set them up with a little table, some chippie, pens, a couple of canvases and a snack and let them go for it... (note the giant WHOLE cheezel in Lukey's mouth)... that kid can eat...

And a good time was had by all...

So that gave me time to get on with some of my own projects. First up is this wee ATC I made for an upcoming show for Twiddleybitz (have you checked out the ning site yet? full of competitions, galleries and fun stuff!). I used a chippie cog and a frame which I embossed with Shimmerz Enamelz for a really cool mirrored look. It didn't photograph as well as i'd have liked but you get the gist...

Next up is a Twiddleybitz treasure chest that I put together and created a memory box out of... it's a bit like a scrapbook page in a box! The outside...

And a close up - I used distressing embossing powder along the bottom edge to make it look like it had just been dug up out of the sand.

And on the inside I decorated it with more Twiddleybitz goodness - the pirate coins which Joshie helped me emboss with some more of the gorgeous new Shimmerz Enamelz embossing powder (you totally need some of these)...

And a close up...

I used some dry oasis (that you put silk flowers in) that I shaped and spray painted gold as the base for the pile of coins. I hot glued all the coins into place and added some junk jewellery and sparkly trim to finish it off.

Ok, back to creating! Got something exciting coming up soon classwise (as well as my upcoming one in Brisbane - have you booked yet?)... loads on, mojo's amped and my wandering parents have found their way back from the sun again so yay, busy exciting week ahead!

L :) x

A trip over the ditch...

I'm heading over to Brisbane to teach a gorgeous mini album at the Paper Crafts Festival show in September. A big box of Shimmerz goodness arrived this morning and you are going. to. LOVE the amazing altered page album from Twiddleybitz that I'm using as the base. Look at that window on the front!! and the scroll cut pages... oh be still my heart. Anyway if you're heading to Brissy for the show (and you really should!) then make sure you book in for all three AMAZING workshops on offer from myself, the incredibly talented Janine Koczwara and cardmaker extraordinnaire Jane Clark.

Each tutor will teach their workshop 4 times over the three days only and spots for each class are limited. You can pre-book by emailing [email protected] as well as getting full information on workshop times. The cost for each workshop will be $55 this includes all materials! Make sure you get in early!!! As a BONUS, if you book into any of the workshops you get THREE days entry for the price of ONE!!!  You can see the schedule here!

Anyway back to my class...

Class Description:  Do you often scrap about your family, children and pets but neglect to tell your own story? Join Louise in creating a beautifully detailled “Growing Up Me” Twiddleybitz album. Decorated with beautiful Prima papers and flowers, Twiddleybitz chipboard and Shimmerz paints, this album is full of little tips and techniques you can easily transfer to your layout scrapbooking. Louise also adds her own custom embellishments to the mix to give you a unique keepsake to treasure for years to come.

Places are filling up so make sure you book!!

L :)

A Style Lounge Challenge...

and you have to be in to win! Over on Aussie Scrap Source we've been running style challenges where you've been asked to create layouts in the style of each of the DT... this week is my turn and of course my inspiration is the uber talented Ingvild Bolme... these are the layouts I created for the challenge but check out the blog for the full details and don't forget to enter!!

Lots of layers, details and clusters on this one, including some of the new canvas mistables (love those!).

See the leaves? they're from the mistables sheet and I sprayed them with Shimmerz, then stamped them with staz-on before cutting them out... voila!

In true Ingvild style I used puff paint and gesso along the edges of the scroll - also from the canvas mistables. It adds dimension and a nice detail :)

And the second layout:

Lots of layers along with some Tim H details and a twiddleybitz butterfly frame.

Check it out over at ASS, I can't wait to see what you create!

L :) x

a LONG post... grab a coffee...

Well SENZ is over for another year and I'm still CRAZY busy with lots of shows, classes, videos and blog posts coming up!! eek how'd that all happen? :D

Anyhoo this is a Tim Holtz configurations box that popped up over on the Aussie Scrap Source blog the other day. (Oh and before I forget, head over and check it out for your chance to guest design for Jenni Bowlin!!). Back to the box... I used a tonne of Tim's fabulous designs on it as well as some of the amazing steampunkey Twiddleybitz chippie (and some gorgeous Prima) but I'm thinking it's not quite done. Oh and yes, that really is our bedroom wall colour (remember I told you we had a circus themed house?)... that WILL be changing. Seriously. How we manage to sleep in there I'll never know. It's not like there's anywhere else in the house we could sleep either, every wall is another shade of sunglasses-required. One thing at a time and anyway, I digress...

I covered the box in Tim's paper masking tape (love that stuff - it covers so easily!!) and arranged and hot glued the boxes so they didn't all lie flat. I inked all the edges (used a mixture of Distress Inks and Staz on) and added those gorgeous feet!

The gorgeous Twiddleybitz chippie was inked in two colours, layered on top of each other and hot glued into place with a door knob just because I could :). I finished that section off with some Prima, and layered a butterfly cut from Tim's paper on top of his metal wings for a really eyecatching finish.

I used the film strip a bit differently too - I hot glued one end into the gaps between a couple of the boxes then twisted it like ribbon before hot gluing the other end into place.

This is the bit that needs work I think, just doesn't work for me now (it did but now... not so much). It feels a bit empty to me still... I think it's one of those things I'll keep fiddling with for years to come (and the piccies are going to change)... stay tuned for updates on this one!!

Speaking of Prima (as I do) I got my Educators box yesterday and Oh. My. Seriously, be still my beating heart... the things they have for you at the upcoming CHA... *sigh*... I seriously {hearts} them and I'm still expecting an email to say sorry, wrong Louise can you please return your box of goodies... (and my answer would be "no, it's mine and kind of crumpled because I've been rolling around in it"). lol

Onto SENZ. This year I decided not to teach as the only time slots were the last couple of hours of the show and I figured everyone would be shopped/classed out by then and I was right. With 87 different classes to choose from (and many repeated multiple times over the weekend), it wouldn't have been worth the time involved to prepare the awesome class I had in mind but stay tuned as I'm thinking I might run it online instead... ;)

Sooo anyway (keep getting sidetracked), I was selling my jewellery at SENZ this year instead of doing anything scrappy and I really enjoyed it! I didn't make a huge amount of money and probably wouldn't do SENZ again as it's the wrong place for that kind of thing, but I did get to talk to a huge number of scrappers who thankfully took the time to come and say hi! Loved meeting you all and it was nice to put a real face to all our facebook comments! All the jewellery and headbands etc that I was selling at the show will be heading into my etsy shop shortly (once I get a second to breathe and load them) and if there's anything custom you'd like just drop me a line.

I spent a fair bit of time (as did my mum who is always an amazing help) preparing my wee table for the show. Mum's currently addicted to making flowers and has been producing the most beautiful paper flowers which we sold a tonne of at the show, as well as sewing this gorgeous table skirt for me!

I saw a picture online somewhere, sent it to her and voila! she's too clever and it made the table look gorgeous. I've also been collecting bits and pieces off trade me for the last few months including a big old tin box, complete with a bit of rust that looked perfect!

So there you go. Sold enough to keep me happy and got some custom orders, had a very long (but fun) weekend and got to finally have a coffee with the lovely and uber-talented Jilly G (been such a long time coming!). Can't wait to catch up again in Brissy in September! Speaking of Brissy, if you're over there then come and check out the Paper Crafts Festival. You can catch classes from me, Janine Koczwara and Jane Clark (and get discounted entry into the show) but bookings are strictly limited!

Ok... that's all for now, be back with some stuff to share as soon as I'm allowed!!

L x

Time to Twiddle...

hop over to the ning site and sign up for the Card swap - easy and low commitment to receive a lovely Twiddleybitz card in return.

Also check out the new sketch/quote challenge going on there - there's a gorgeous sketch and you're in to win a MYSTERY PRIZE....

 

L x