My SMASH book the DIY way- Part 2

My SMASH book adventure....

Yup, I am following the masses and trying out Smashing...however, I happen to have too many supplies and I need another book/album/journal like I need another hole in my head.
So, I decided to make one.

My ingredients  list for the "base" go as follows,

Cardstock for the pages, pads are great for this.
Chipboard (I used very lightweight stuff, next time I'll use heavier stuff!!)
Coverstock for printing
Paper bags (I used super long sine bags)
Envelopes
Page protectors
Random papers and tags

I used my Fiskars rotary trimmer (so I could trim 6-8 cardstock pages at one time) to trim my pages down to 8x10 from 8.5 by 11. I also trimmer the covers to 8.5 by 10 1/2 so they fit properly after I punched and bound them with my Zutter.

 I learned that I need to use bigger wires if I am to make a bigger book (the pages turn fine but the cover is just a tiny bit too tight. I also think I will use heavier chipboard for the covers next time, so it feels more solid.

I printed up lots of ephemera pages from The Graphics Fairy and from JSIM, both websites have lots of freebie images to add to the pages.I used the coverstock for these, since it's heavy enough to handle stuff attached to the paper and I had it in a cream colour, to go with the vintage feel of the book.

If you click on the image, it will take you straight to the blog it came from, The Graphics Fairy.

Another one of the images I used.

The inside front cover, I love roses so this had to be at the forefront of my Smash.

Again, another great ephemera image from the Graphics Fairy.

I think this page looks perfect!

I printed this with one right side up and the other upside down, adds to the charm.

I have to tell you that my printer ran out of yellow at some point, but I was not worried, I like the tones the pages took without it.
I have made a youtube video for my SMASH book, this is my first real video...so bear with me, I am not an expert yet! Once I figure this whole "editing" thing out, I am sure they will get much better.I am just working on part 2. You'll see the progress in that video.

Anyhow, time to run and make dinner. The kid is getting hungry.....

Cheers,
Viviana


Just linking up to a few blogs,

SMASH Book from K&Company

I didn't buy one, because I have been working on my own journal/smash book for a long time. I think it's about time I show it off...... soon I'll share!

Cheers,
V.

Too much rain....

It has rained almost non stop for a few week, and last night I finally had a few minutes to trim the lawn in the back yard (it's a very small yard)...... this is what it looked like behind the deck.

I got halfway with the weed wacker and the mosquitoes tried to eat me alive.....

That's all I got, for right now. Later today I will blog something more fun.

Cheers,
V.

WHY?? Yes, this is a rant post.

I will start this one by letting you all know this may not turn out to be a pretty post.

Today, when I walked across the football field to pick up my son from school, I saw something that almost made me scream out in horror; A teacher was bent down tying a child's shoelace. Now I am not saying teachers shouldn't help, however when a child is in grade 3/4?? Should he not have a minimal skill such as tying his own shoe mastered already? WTF is this world coming to when parents are such lazy a$$es that they cannot take the 30 minutes out of their lives it takes to teach a child of 8 or 9 to TIE HIS FREAKIN' SHOE?????

I am horrified at how few skills (considered basic learning) kids don't have at that age, I am not talking about your special needs child, or a child with a learning disability, I'm strictly speaking of your average intelligence child, who can achieve many great things when given the skills, that's all. We as are bringing up a nation of useless, skilless, underachieving children and we are not ashamed yet?? No wonder kids nowadays can do a perfect pirouette for ballet, wear the latest Roxy shoes and designer jeans, have parents that drive BMW's and Cadillacs, yet they cannot even tie their own shoelaces????
This type of parenting does not do your child any service. How hard is it to take the time to teach them a basic skill? It took us a couple of weeks to teach my son, he was 4 at the time. I taught another child in 30 minutes, because she was almost 7, she caught on much faster.
People need to stop treating kids like they are too dumb to learn, or hire someone to take the time to do the job. No wonder north America is failing as a whole. A society increasing in under educated individuals, because nobody takes the time to feed the beautiful minds of children. Children are like sponges, it is a saying everybody knows, they are not dumb, they are extremely capable. Take away the DS/Wii/Computer for 30 minutes each day, teach them skills such as taking turns, patience, simple math, conversation skills, manners, tying a bow on your shoe, and by doing all these things you are not only giving your kids basic life skills, you are giving them a foundation and even greater, you are showing them how much you love and care about them and their future.

I am not the best parent out there, and sometimes I fall back on parenting skills I picked up from my own parents, however, I refuse to think that my son is any less a intelligent human than I was. He has learned many skills that may seem ridiculous to teach a child of 7... he can sew a button, not greatly, but he'll never have to ask anyone else to do it for him. He can tie a good couple of knots and tie his shoes, he can swim (a work in progress), he can ride a bike and a scooter, he can read (he's on the 8th book of "The 39 Clues"), he can add and subtract, we play Yahtzee, the Game of Life, Stratego, and I'm learning to play Chess alongside him. I try to learn if I don't know, and if he asks I am honest and look stuff up for him or with him.
He is reading this post as I type, and he just announced that him and one other boy are the only ones in his grade one class that know how to tie their shoes. Dismal!!

He tied his own shoes last spring for NSD Basketball!!

So there you have it, My rant of the week. Yes, it may sound opinionated, but someone has to speak up for capable children.... I guess my next project will be a tutorial on shoe tying, I want to make it my mission to show parents how easy it actually is, and yes, practice does make perfect, just ask my son David!

I will never underestimate my son's ability to learn!

Cheers and have a great Father's day,
Viviana

My Scrappy Dress Form, psst....it's my SIZE!!!

Last fall, I sort of went crazy looking for a dress form...I looked on the net, I called stores, I tried wedding dress boutiques for a broken mannequin.... I tried everything, but no one seemed to have one to sell, throw out, give away, etc. I was about to give up, when I was driving past a plus size ladies store, I stopped in to ask, what could it hurt. The manager was rude and said no, they do not give them away or sell dress forms, they destroy them! OK, well that was useless. A young sales clerk handed me her number and said call me.
I did and she offered me her dress forms, her boyfriend had salvaged them from the dumpster out back and they no longer needed them....AWESOME!!
Now, I'm not allowed to show you the before pictures because I promised her I wouldn't (logo on them), so here is the finished pictures.

It's a size 14 (now I'm really a 16 right now, but working my way down!!).

I used vintage (25yrs) dictionary  pages and Gold Glimmer Modpodge to cover it with.

I watered down the Modpodge to make it easier to work with, it makes the form glow. I had fun with the pages, putting the definition of "First Base" on her upper right breast, hahah!

This is the other form she gave me, it's a size 14 bust! I did the same with this one and it's perfect for showing off jewelery or scarves. Notice my newest creation, apparently they are all the rage, those ribbon pearl necklaces.

That necklace cost $2 to make!! and about 45 minutes of my time. Love it so much I am going to make another in red.

I usually stand it on a stool when I want to work on altering something, I'm quite happy with the results.

So I kinds liked that I was saved from dumpster diving myself for one, thanks for generous and kind strangers.

I'll be linking to these great blogs,









Cheers,
Viviana