Celebrate Summer

Challenge 28 over at Crop Chocolate was another FUN one!!  It is to create a project that "Celebrates Summer" with the added requirement of including water. Water can be added however you want - in a photo, a stamp, a wave border, rain, etc!!
I did a layout, 12x12.  I know…another one!  I am on a roll.  I might even have enough pages to put an album together soon.

Crop Chocolate products:  Echo Park Everyday Eclectic, Summertime and Playground cardstock.  I really like the new Everyday Eclectic, great colors and even greater patterns!!  Distress Ink-Broken China and Spiced Marmalade, Xyron Mega Runner, Fancy Pants Summer Soiree stamps, Liquid Pearls-white
Non-CC products:  Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist-Jazz Blue, various punches, Hexagon template, Stickles-Orange Peel, MS glitter
One of my scrappy friends, Scrappy Canuck, is always doing great projects that inspire me to try things I normally wouldn’t.  On this project it was hidden journaling.  You can see what else she is up to by clicking here.

This will be a great place for me to tell the story of this page!  And I snuck in an extra photo to complete the photo journey of this snapshot in time.


There are a lot of different techniques on this page…fussy cutting, misting, pearl swirls, punching, distressing, stamping and of course BLING!  I love the layers and how all the colors came together.
I hope you enjoyed this project and that you stop by again soon.

Subway Art

Our Crop Chocolate Focus Group project for August was a project that includes Subway Art.  You have probably noticed in stores and online, a lot of Subway Art for home decor.  It is all over the place.  I really enjoyed this challenge!
I did a canvas with a picture I love from a really great trip I recently took to Wilmington, NC.   All of the words and phrases are from special places we've been, holidays that hold special meaning and things that are meaningful to us.

Crop Chocolate product:  Slice, FaLaLa and Paws and Claws card, MME Stella and Rose Hazel and So Sophie, EP Wintertime, Lush Brown Houndstooth, MM Metro Mini Shimmer alphas, Distress Stain-Vintage Photo, Stickles-Golden Rod.
Non-CC product:  Words and Expressions card, star punch, canvas, metal charm



Some of you may recognize my bestie in the picture with me.  Last week, after lots of diliberation, I packaged up this canvas and sent it to him.  I was torn because I really wanted to hang it on my own wall... oh well I could always do another one, I'll add it to my list.

Scraplift Challenge

Some of my scrappy friends are hosting a challenge and there is blog candy to be awarded.  I love a chance to win a prize.  These are the originals…  
You can learn more about the actual challenge by visiting Kathy’s or Rachel’s blogs.  I LOVE these layouts, I saw something similar on Pinterest and have wanted to try it!  Thanks for the inspiration ladies.  Both of your versions are fantastic!!

I actually did a layout too…I told you I was going to try to do more layouts.  I really like how it turned out.

I used Echo Park Country Drive for my base and Echo Park Happy Days for all of the circles and photo mat.  The journaling banners are Echo Park Springtime.  I got all the paper from Crop Chocolate, my favorite place to shop for scrappy sweetness.  I also used Distress Ink-Broken China, Black Soot and Worn Lipstick Lush rhinestones (from CC) and MM Paper Reverie pearl gems (from CC).  Some of the tiny circles are stamped with Distress Ink and a pencil eraser.  I also used Distress Stickles-Broken China.  One of my new favorite techniques is masking, which I did all around the layout.  I adhered everything to the page with the Xyron Mega Runner, one of my latest purchases from Crop Chocolate.

I still have to do some journaling but I am linking up to the challenge so wish me luck!  Oh, and if you feel inspired, PLEASE link up a project of y our own.  I hope you do!!

Somewhere over the rainbow…

Challenge 27 over at Crop Chocolate is a great one!  Have you entered yet??  What are you waiting for??  This weeks challenge coordinates with a fellow design team members project post on The Crop, check out what Brenna did by clicking here.
This week we were to create a project that is rainbow-inspired with some bling. You did not have to include a rainbow itself, however.  Stop by Crop Chocolate to see all the projects submitted.



Crop Chocolate products: Echo Park and MME scraps, EP Winterpark, Jillibean Soup twine, Xyron Mega Runner, Perfect Pearls, Distress Ink-Walnut stain, MM Paper Reverie gems, MM magnetic stamps. Non-CC products: Tim Holtz Holiday Lamppost die, Fiskars banner punch, TA Glimmer Glaze-Waterfall, Staz On ink-black, Maya Rd wood bird, star punchinella from Gauche Alchemy.
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  Thanks for stopping by and I hope you are inspired to create something great!!

Winner Announcement

THANK you ALL so much for your sweet comments and support!!

I have used Random.org to select a winner.  True Random Number Generator: Result:9

And that winner is: 

mommyx2August 13, 2012 8:42 PM

This is so pretty. I love it. I hope that I am the lucky winner!! I would love to win some by belle handmade sweetness!

Please PM me over at Crop Chocolate with your mailing address so I can send you your sweet surprise.  Oh and let me know if you truly want to be surprised or if you would like me to post what you will be receiving before you get it.

Mosaic Altered Frame and Giveaway

Today, my second Crop Chocolate design team post is up!  Yahoo!!  Our theme for August was MOSAIC.  This was a fun one!  I altered a frame that desperately needed a 'pick me up'.
Here is the finished product...

For more pictures and details please click here.  Leave a comment at The Crop and come back and let me know you did.  At the end of the week I will have a drawing to give away a little handmade 'sweetness' made by your truly.  Check back Friday August 17th after 10:00 am EST to see if you won.

Crop Chocolate’s Challenge 26

Old and New: A marriage of Old and New. If you're like me, you love using new goodies and elements, but also have a huge stockpile of old products and tools that you may or may not use. This challenge is about creating a successful marriage of old and new. Use one or more new element (washi tape, chevrons, hexagons, banner's, baker's twine, what have you) and one or more old element (staples, buttons, punches, edging scissors, regular twine, whatever). Combine old and new to create something beautiful, fresh and current!  As always, I recommend you check out all of the entries, just click here.
It took me a few minutes but I decided that since my first crafty items, WAY back when, where stamps…well you can guess.  I just gat a delivery Monday.  It was my latest Crop Chocolate order (which, by the way, set a record getting to me since I just place it last Friday) and I had some great new items to try!

Crop Chocolate product: Authentique Celebrate (new), Echo Park Winterpark, Lush rhinestones, Liquid Pearls-Baby Blue, Stella and Rose Hattie Boy, Xyron Mega Runner (new), Distress Ink-Black Soot
Non CC product: Hero Arts stamp (old), Ranger embossing powder, 81/2x11 cardstock (old), Spellbinders

Harlequin (my FAVORITE), dots and stripes…I love them all and now love them all together!!  How do you feel about mixing these types of patterns??

Crop Chocolate Challenge 25-BANNERS

During the AMAZING blog hop we just had with Crop Chocolate’s new design team we saw so much inspiration on cute BANER projects… so let's put it to use!! For this challenge, you must create something (LO, card, altered art, home decor - whatever!) that includes a banner as well as either a button or a bow. My project is a retirement card I need for a shindig this weekend.  I was inspired by one of my fellow Chocolatiers, Christina.  You can see her cards here.
Crop Chocolate product: Echo Park Winterpark (card base), MME Lime Twist Out of the Blue, Distress Ink-Broken China, Dear Santa rhinestones, Lush buttons, Stickles-Crystal, Jillibean Soup twine, Slice cordless cutter.
Non-CC product: Fiskars punches, paper smooches stamp, Staz On ink, dictionary page.

I am proud to say that I have entered all 25 great challenges at Crop Chocolate and have been lucky enough to win 2!  :)  These are all super fun and a great way to get inspired to complete so many things!  There is so much talent in all of the ladies posting their projects in all of these challenges, you should DEFINATELY check it out by clicking here.
Thanks for stopping by!!

Glimmer Mist and Gesso!

Recently I took a GREAT class at my LSS Scrappy Chic.  It was taught by Jen Starr.  It was a fantastic learning experience and it was a pleasure meeting her!  If you get an opportunity to take one of her classes you defiantly should.

She showed us how to make this gatebook.  We used lots of glimmer mist and gesso…we all had very inky fingers, it was a blast!
Here are some photos of the process, all the paper was cut to size but we misted EVERYTHING!


And here are some pictures of the beautiful details.

And the folds, flaps and tags inside.



This is going to make an excellent gift…but for who??  I am excited to see what is will look like with pictures and journaling!!
Look for my own version of this gatebook in the near future.  Maybe I’ll do a tutorial too.  ;)

We Have a Winner!!

Winner winner chicken dinner!  Where exactly did that saying come from??  Oh well, that is for another day!
First I would like to say THANK YOU for all the wonderful comments!  You ladies sure know how to make a girl feel good about her work!  Second, thanks for participting in this super fun introductory blog hop!  I feel very honored to be on the Crop Chocolate Design Team and with this kind of support we really are going to have a BANNER term!

OK, now to the fun stuff!!  I have this little blog candy package to give away along with a little handmade sweet surprise (that I will be whipping up in the next day or two).





I used random.org to select my winner...I haven't figured out how to post the pretty version but here is my 'version' of the number selected.

True Random Number Result:38Powered by RANDOM.ORG

And here is post number 38:





Joyce SJuly 28, 2012 10:11 PM

Oh Belle, I don't know why, as I've been fortunate to see some of your other projects, but I was stunned when I saw your banner project. What a beautiful creation!! Your god daughter is one lucky girl! She'll love that for years to come!... (I am currently a follower & on Crop Chocolate am mostly known as Juliet).

Please send me a PM over on Crop Chocolate with your info and I will get your prize out at the end of the week.  Congratulations!!

Thanks again everyone who stopped by and THANKS Amber for organizing!!