Studio

Mix and Match

Putting patterned papers together can often be challenging.  It's easy to pull out all your favorites to use but it may be tricky to make them all work together well.  Design Team member Belinda shows us a couple of ways to include all those papers on one page...

Supplies: Humpty Dumpty paper (34665) - Baby, Boing paper (34705) - Backyard, Flitter paper (34695) - Backyard, Splash paper (34697) - Backyard, Baa paper (34689) - Backyard, By the Yard Bubblegum (42970) - Thickers, Patchwork Bubblegum (42976) - Thickers, Garden Phrases (43326) - Mini marks

Her 8.5x11 page uses five different patterned papers, but succeeds in not looking too busy or overwhelming.  How did she do that?  Here are a couple of tips...

1.) Use a simple patterned as your background.  Using the green gingham paper is a great base for the layout because there aren't any icons or crazy colors to distract from the photo.

2.) Cut fun icons out of the papers. Many of the Backyard papers have big patterns made from fun icons.  Trim those out and adhere with pop dots to add cool embellishments like flowers or butterflies.

3.) Combine patterned papers with Thickers accents or House shapes.  A little scrap of patterned paper was cleverly set behind the house Thicker, adding some fun detail to the solid shape.

4.) Layer, layer, layer.  Layering patterned scraps of patterned paper is a great way to include all those papers you want to use.  Belinda used a darker paper behind her title to make the letters really pop.

Springtime Week!

Since it's starting to get warmer, flowers are beginning to bloom, and we're pulling out lighter jackets it's the perfect time to celebrate spring!

It's Springtime week on the AC Studio blog!  We're bringing you plenty of inspiration to help brighten up the season.

American Crafts products cover everything you need for your Springtime projects.  Last year we released our Spring & Summer collection full of flowers, butterflies, and birds.  The Spring & Summer line also included the fabulous Poolside Thickers.

This year year at CHA we put out new Backyard collection.  Backyard is perfect for your Springtime projects - from Easter to summer picnics, we've got you covered.  The new puffy Rainboots Thickers are part of the fabulous Backyard line and a fabulous script font for any project.

Design Team member Jen created this beautiful page about her favorite Springtime loves...

Supplies: 12x12 Carstock Vanilla (71041) - AC Cardstock, 12x12 Cardstock Sand (71043) - AC Cardstock, Alice Sticheson (34724) - Craft Fair, Millie Singer (34731) - Craft Fair, Sizzle (34701) - Backyard, Pop (34690) - Backyard, Flitter (34695) Backyard collection, Buzz (34696) - Backyard collection, Quack paper (34691) Backyard, Splash (34697) Backyard collection, Patchwork Aqua (42974) - Thickers, Umbrella Cricket (42968) - Thickers, Teen Friend's House (77189) - House, Rockstar Accents (43319) - Minimarks, Lauren font (43316) - Minimarks, Garden Phrases (43326) - Minimarks, Black Fine (62001) - Slick Writer, Laugh ribbon (57916) Occasions Three

Stay tuned for more Springtime inspiration this week!  Tomorrow we've got another great project from a designer who is looking forward to the warm sunshine & singing birds this Spring!

Craft Fair Challenge!

If you guessed yesterday that Shannon's favorite product is B. - Sotheby's Remarks stickers, you were right!

Congratulations to Andrea Wiebe, winner of last week's challenge!  And now here is this week's challenge for you to win a Craft Fair prize pack...

With lots of pinks, reds, and flowers on the papers (not to mention they're all named after women!) it's easy to use the Craft Fair line for girlie themed pages.  But let's see your fabulous creations using it on a different topic, whether it's a page about boys, travel, pets, etc. 

Here's a gorgeous layout from Design Team member Marla to get you started...

Supplies: Fannie Mendell (34715) - Craft Fair, Lucy Hootski (34717) - Craft Fair, Elanore Battington (34719) - Craft Fair, Faye Needleworth (34730) - Craft Fair, Edith Fitzbolt (34733) - Craft Fair, Sally Patchrick (34737) - Craft Fair, White Cardstock (71081), Leaf Cardstock (71052), Patchwork Letter Stickers Aqua (42974) - Thickers, Patchwork Letters Stickers Ladybug (42973) - Thickers, Memory Marker (6101)

And here's a wonderful layout from Design Team member Melanie, who also has two awesome boys of her own...

Supplies: Faye Needleworth (34730) - Craft Fair, Mona Trimenez (34732) - Craft Fair, 8.5x11 Cardstock Chestnut (71123) - AC Cardstock, Made With Love (70024) - Flair, Patchwork Aqua (42974) - Thickers

To be qualified to win: 
1. The layout must be posted to an online gallery or blog listing the American Crafts in your supply list.

2.  You must leave a comment on this blog post with a link to your layout online.  You also must fill in your email address when posting your comment on this blog post.

3. Layouts and links must be posted by midnight PST on Thursday, April 2.

Good luck and we can't wait to see all your layouts!

To end the week I've got one more fun thing inspired by Craft Fair to show you...


Recognize that tattoo?  It's from the Cafe Accents MiniMarks book!


It was so cool to get an email from one of AC's biggest fans telling us about her new tattoo of the sewing machine image.  Everyone in the AC design studio was excited to see the photos - thanks for the AC love, Jessica!

Designer Spotlight: Shannon Zickel

This month’s designer spotlight is on Shannon Zickel.  Shannon first joined the ACDT back in 2005 and then once her two year term was over we missed her so much, we asked her to come back for more in 2008!  Sit back and enjoy getting to know Shannon...

Name:  Shannon Zickel
Hometown:  Louisville, Kentucky
Occupation:  After 15 years of climbing the corporate ladder I have taken a part time position as Marketing Operations Manager for a major appliance manufacturer- this allows me to be keep up with my boys busy schedules!

If I had a million dollars I would... probably not do much different than I do now!  I would donate some to both of my son's schools. And take an extravagant trip to Disney - Eli has never been there- and I'd like to go when not on a budget!
I never miss an episode of... Lost! 
My dessert of choice is... Yellow cake made from a box with extra extra chocolate frosting on it!
In my closet... are all new Huggable Hangers- in linen- I love having a very organized closet!
What I love the most about American Crafts is... Their ability to stay true to a style that has been with them for years- yet always come up with new and innovative products, color combos and ideas.  Oh and the really cool packaging ideas they come up with too!

Supplies: Elanore Battington (34719) - Craft Fair, Marge Hemmingway (34716) - Craft Fair, Edith Fitzbolt (34733) - Craft Fair, Lucy Hootski (34717) - Craft Fair, Ribbit (34688) - Backyard, .03 Black (62311) - Precision Pen

I asked Shannon to share some photos of her scrap space.  Wouldn’t it be nice to be this organized?

You can find more of Shannon's work every month in BHG Scrapbooks Etc and on her blog!

Can you guess what Shannon's favorite AC product is?  Corduroy albums, Sotheby's Remarks stickers, or Haute ribbon?

Postmarked Wednesday

Wednesdays have a new name around here...

Each Wednesday we're bringing you two card ideas for you to whip up, seal, and get postmarked to send along to a friend.

This week I created two cards using the Craft Fair line.  It's such a versatile line sure to brighten anyone's day.  Have fun mixing and matching patterned paper and elements together to create a mini masterpiece on a card!

Supplies: Midge Gathermore (34714) - Craft Fair, Fannie Mendell (34715) - Craft Fair, Elanore Battington (34719) - Craft Fair, Patchwork Bubblegum (42976) - Thickers, Hildi (43329) - MiniMarks, Market Accents (43331) - MiniMarks, Baby Large Set (59000) - Clear Stamps, Medium Brads Dandelion (8498) - Elements, Round Button Assortment White (8211) - Elements

Create your own pop- up card with some punches and foam adhesive.

 

Supplies: Nancy Knitley (34736) - Craft Fair, Edith Fitzbolt (34733) - Craft Fair, Craft Yard Assortment (43330) - MiniMarks

I punched a circle in the front of the card with a medium size punch, then adhered a smaller punched circle on the inside flap of the card.  They fit perfectly and with the help of some foam adhesive, stick right through the front.

Hope these ideas inspire you to get some cards postmarked yourself!  Tomorrow we've got the spotlight on one of our fabulous Design Team members.  Want a hint?  She's a fun loving Kentucky girl who "rocks paper & scissors!"

Perfect Place for Pins

It’s easy to be inspired to get creative with the Craft Fair collection, but Design Team member Jill blew me away with this altered item.  She created this adorable box to hold pins in her sewing area.

Supplies: Myrtle O'Seam (34727) - Craft Fair, Betsy Tailor (34721) - Craft Fair,  Fabric Chipboard Bubblegum (42976) - Thickers, Fabric Chipboard Patchwork (42975) - Thickers, Craft  Yard Assortment (43330) - MiniMarks, Grin (87602) - Occasions Ribbon

She utilized so many products from the Craft Fair line in such cool ways.  Did you notice the button Patchwork Thickers on the top?  What a great idea to group them together!

The cute patterned paper on the top works so well with the striped paper on the bottom, especially with the fun details Jill added.  She used MiniMarks to bring in adorable touches like the “sew cool” and little button.

Have you created an altered item using the Craft Fair Collection?  We’d love to see it!

Craft Fair Week!

Welcome another great week on the AC Studio Blog!  This week we’re bringing you some ideas for using one of our newest collections inspired by Etsy.com. 

It’s Craft Fair!  Taking a cue from the wonderful inspiration over at Etsy, this line is about all things handmade.  You’ll find lots of stitches, hand drawn doodles, and even a sewing machine icon in the MiniMarks book.

Design Team member Melanie created this beautiful layout using the Craft Fair line:

Supplies: Elanore Battington paper (34719) - Craft Fair, Pearl Bobbinhauser paper (34718) - Craft Fair, Millie Singer paper (34731) - Craft Fair, Knit Ribbon (89097) - Craft Fair, Typo Mustard (42979) - Thickers, Craftfair Market Accents Multi (43331) - Minimarks, Purkey Brown (43275) - Minimarks

She found the perfect use for those adorable little birds!

We’re sure you’ll find the Craft Fair collection as addicting as browsing on Etsy!  Looking to do some shopping for Craft Fair products?  Check out the links on the side for our fabulous retailers. 

Stay tuned for more fun this week.

Thickers Challenge!

Every Friday we’re going to issue a challenge and we hope you’ll play along!  To close Thickers week with a bang, we’ll be giving away some of our favorites in a Thickers Prize Pack to this week’s winner.

Here’s a layout from Design Team member Doris to help you get some inspiration...
To be qualified to win: 
1. The layout must be posted to an online gallery or blog listing the American Crafts + the name of the Thickers in the supply list.  (Example - for this layout she would write “Supplies - American Crafts Rockabye, Text, and Tiara Thickers”)

2.  You must leave a comment on this blog post with a link to your layout online.  You also must fill in your email address when posting your comment on this blog post.

3. Layouts and links must be posted by midnight PST on Thursday, March 26.

Happy scrapping and good luck!

Thickers Organization

Storage and organization is always a tricky problem we have to face, especially when you have a Thickers addiction and have to have them all!  Here are some solutions from a couple of our Design Team members.

Linda keeps her Thickers stored upright in Cropper Hopper paper containers.  The containers have enough room to store them with two columns across.  She also keeps them organized by color to cut down on search time.

Belinda has come up with a great upright storage solution as well.  She uses a Clip It Up system to keep them hung up.  She also created this unique piece for her desk as well.  Utilizing those same Clip It Up hangers, they put a thin rod under the top of a shelf and hung them under there as well.  Great space saver!

I’ve got one more tip of my own to share with you.  I like to keep mine in the sleeves, so I use an exacto knife to make a small slit in the bottom of the package.  This way you can easily pull them in and out of the sleeve while keeping the stickers protected while they’re stored.  No lost letters or lost pages.

Have a great storage idea for your Thickers?  We’d love to hear about it!

Tweet Tweet

Do you Tweet?  American Crafts is now on Twitter - we'd love to follow you!  Find our Tweets right here.  Not on Twitter?  You can also subscribe to our feed using Google Reader or Bloglines.  An extra fun way to keep up with what's going on in the studio.

Every Wednesday we’re going to be bringing you a two card ideas from our talented Design Team members.  Cards are a great way to use up those scraps we just can’t seem to thow away!

Design Team member Nichole created this fabulous card using fun Thickers Accents...

Supplies: Umbrella Grapefruit (42963) - Thickers, Chit Chat Chestnut (42901) - Thickers, Darling White (42910) - Thickers, Preppy Paper (34605) - Moda Bella, 12x12 Cardstock White (71156) - AC Cardstock, Black .03 (62311) - Precision Pen

I love the way she layed and fit them inside each other - awesome idea for using a bunch of different shapes on one card.

Design Team member Amy put together this adorable Miss You card.  Who wouldn’t want to get this in the mail...

Supplies:  Nancy Knitley Paper (34736) - Craft Fair, Patchwork Ladybug (42973) - Thickers, Baby Foam (77191) - New House

Even against the darker background paper the pink Thickers are so bright and cheerful that they pop out and are easy to read.

I hope this gives you a couple ideas to get you started making some cards with Thickers!  Here are the answers from yesterday’s Favorite Thickers matching game... A3, B4, C1, D2.  Here’s one more chance to guess.  Can you match the designer with their favorite?

Stay tuned for some Thickers organizational tips tomorrow.