Whimzee's Girls Online

Back to Basics Workshop - Technique featuring Luminarte Mists & Daubers

2011-06-28T22:30:00.000-07:00

Hello again! After taking a month off due to graduations & dance recitals, the Whimzee's Girls are again ready to share a new edition of our fun series of Back to Basics Workshops. This Saturday, July 2, 2011, we'll be featuring the versatile and very colorful Luminarte Radiant Rain Shimmering Mists and Daubers. During our workshop, we'll share this great technique for adding more color and a little glitz to your papercrafting projects. We'd love it if you could call the store at (503) 259-9130 or leave us a comment here or on our Facebook page, to let us know you're planning on stopping by. (We like to get a handle on how many make & takes to prepare before each workshop.)

While we're busy prepping for this fun workshop, we did some research and thought you might enjoy taking a look at all the projects we found in the Creative Imaginations Gallery, featuring these fun products. Bookmark this post, then you can easily find it when you pull out all the fun mists & daubers you bought at the store!

Back to Basics Workshop - Tool featuring WeR's Sew Easy

2011-05-04T18:43:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, May 7 from 10:00am to noon, will be the third in our series of Back to Basics Workshops. This edition of the workshop will feature the Sew Easy Tool from WeR Memory Keepers. Just in time for the holiday, we'll be making a fun Mother's Day card for our Make & Take. If you're planning to attend our workshop, please call the store at (503) 259-9130 to RSVP, so we know how many Make & Takes to prepare. But if you don't get a chance to call, don't worry, we'll make a few extras.

We Whimzee's Girls are very excited about the Sew Easy tool. Just imagine being able to give your papercrafting projects the up-to-the-minute look of handstitching without buying a sewing machine or dusting off the one in the back of your closet. Purchase a Sew Easy tool that includes a handle and a straight stitch head and you're ready to go. Now, if you're looking to add more fun stitches, just grab a couple extra stitch heads and add even more variety to your projects.

Check out these videos and project photos to see some of the many things you can do with your Sew Easy tool. And don't forget to stop by the store Saturday to try one out for yourself! Or if you already have one at home, bring it in & we'll show you how to use it.

In addition to our Back to Basics Workshop, we also have our National Scrapbook WEEK Sale going on on Saturday! We'll have the front tables covered with sale merchandise and we're offering some special discounts just for Saturday:

Spend $25 - Get 10% off your purchase of regular priced or sale merchandise

Spend $50 - Get 15% off your purchase of regular priced or sale merchandise

Spend $75 - Get 20% off your purchase of regular priced or sale merchandise

Spend $100 - Get 25% off your purchase of regular priced or sale merchandise

(These discounts are only valid Saturday, May 7, 2011 during store hours 10:00am to 3:00pm. Discount not to be combined with other discounts, coupons or waived crop fees, except where specifically mentioned by Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio.)

Now keep reading & get inspired, we know you'll love the Sew Easy as much as we do!

See you in the store! -The Whimzee's Girls

A Quick Overview of the Sew Easy from WeR

A WeR rep demos the Sew Easy at CHA

See a variety of Sew Easy heads used

This video shows some of the different stitches you can make with the different stitch heads.

Back to Basics Workshop - Technique featuring Core'dinations Cardstock

2011-04-01T13:14:00.000-07:00

We'd like to invite you to our second Back to Basics Workshop, this Saturday, April 2 from 10am to 12pm. This workshop is the second in a series of Back to Basics Workshops. Each workshop will feature either a tool or technique. During this second workshop, we are featuring our huge collection of Core'dinations Cardstock & all the techniques for altering it for use in your projects. Everyone will get a chance to play with the Core'dinations Cardstock during this drop in workshop. Whether you've never used our CC papers or have a huge collection of your own at home, we'd love to have you join us for the workshop. Our purpose for these workshops is to encourage you to pull out some of those tools & supplies that you were so excited about when you purchased them, but haven't had the time to explore on your own. We'll show you some fun projects to make with our product that we're sure you'll want to run home and recreate! Of course, we'll have the papers available for purchase, in case you don't have them at home. If you're planning on attending or have any questions, please call the store at 503.259.9130 or RSVP on our Facebook Event Page.
THANKS!

In preparation for the workshop, we've been searching the internet for ideas to share with you. During our search, we've come up with some great projects featuring Core'dinations Cardstock. So if you can't make it to the workshop or do attend and want more information on your tool once you get it home, we thought we'd give you some links to websites and videos from around the web featuring the Core'dinations Cardstock.

Core'dinations Website

Core'dinations Blog

Core'dinations Technique Videos

Back to Basics Workshop - Tools featuring the Martha Stewart Scoring Board & Trimmer

2011-03-03T17:14:00.000-08:00

We'd like to invite you to our very first Back to Basics Workshop, this Saturday, March 5 from 10am to 12pm. This workshop is the first in a series of Back to Basics Workshops. Each workshop will feature either a tool or technique. During this first workshop, we are featuring the Martha Stewart Scoring Board and Paper Trimmer. Everyone will get a chance to use the tools to create a Make & Take during this drop in workshop. Whether you have one of our featured tools at home gathering dust or would like to try out something new, we'd love to have you join us for the workshop. Our purpose for these workshops is to encourage you to pull out some of those tools that you were so excited about when you purchased them, but never took the time to learn how to use. We'll show you some fun projects to make with our featured tools that we're sure you'll want to run home and recreate! Of course, we'll have the tools available for purchase, in case you don't have them at home. If you're planning on attending or have any questions, please call the store at 503.259.9130 or RSVP on our Facebook Event Page, so we know how many Make & Takes to prepare.

THANKS!

In preparation for the workshop, we've been searching the internet and practicing with our tools. During our search, we've come up with some great demonstration videos for our featured products. So if you can't make it to the workshop or do attend and want more information on your tool once you get it home, we thought we'd give you some links to websites and videos from around the web featuring the Martha Stewart Scoring Board and Paper Trimmer.

Check out this video demo showing how to create a box & lid with the Martha Stewart Scoring Board...

Nice demo of how to create an envelope with the Martha Stewart Scoring Board...

And a step by step slideshow on how to craft a rosette, with some nice mood music...

How about one more? A rosette with a punched edge...

OK, we know you want one more! :) A pearl is used to finish this rosette. The presenter uses hot glue to create her rosette, our favorite adhesive for this project and we learn how to create a card with a half rosette...

And now for a few photos and links to create some beautiful projects with the Martha Stewart Scoring Board...

A project for the guys! We think this is a great one for Father's Day, thanks to the CraftGossip.com blog.

Folded Paper Shirt Card

A fun birthday card created with the Scoring Board & the Cricut from The Green Cricut blog...

Celebrate with Flourish

The Imaginisce Blog combines two of our favorite things, rosettes & banners...

NOEL Banner

And from Martha Stewart Crafts, a great description of their Paper Trimmer...

We'll leave you with a few project photos to inspire you to get crafting with your Martha Stewart Scoring Board and Paper Trimmer...

We'll get back to you soon with some more links to some of these last few projects. But since we've got rosettes on the brain, we think we'd better take a break & get back to preparing for this weekend's workshop!

Leave us a comment & let us know which of these projects is your favorite!

And of course, we'd love to have you leave us a link to a project you've created with either the Martha Stewart Scoring Board or Paper Trimmer.

If you'd like more papercrafting inspiration or would like to join our online community and post your project photos there, we'd love to have you!

Click on over to Whimzee's Girls Online Community to join us!

HUGE Warehouse Sale - Starts 9/16/10 at 5pm

2010-09-15T07:01:00.001-07:00

Whimzee's Sale Starts tomorrow night! Sop by and pick up some great crafting & gift bargains!!! Great for those crafters, teachers, church schools & bargain hunters out there! We'll be giving a $5 Whimzee's Buck for every $50 spent clearance merchandise. Use your Whimzee's Buck on regular priced merchandise in the Main Store

PLEASE SHARE!!!!!

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Whimzee-s-Warehouse-Sale-starts-Thurs--5pm.html?soid=1101414052940&aid=fvXrNafSK0g

HUGE Warehouse Sale - Starts 9/16/10 at 5pm

2010-09-15T07:01:00.000-07:00

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Whimzee-s-Warehouse-Sale-starts-Thurs--5pm.html?soid=1101414052940&aid=fvXrNafSK0g

Get Crafty with the Kids this Summer

2010-08-13T09:25:00.000-07:00

Check out Julie's latest article on the Oregon Women's Report webpage:
Get Crafty with the Kids this Summer

For more photos of the Picture Frame Project click on over to her blog, JulieChats!

'Wedding & Valentine 50% off This Week at Whimzee's'

2010-08-04T11:39:00.000-07:00

Check out this week's special in the store! 'Wedding & Valentine 50% off This Week at Whimzee's'

Also check out the newsletter for our August events & crops!

'Christmas in July 50% off Sale & What's New @ Whimzee's'

2010-07-28T07:58:00.000-07:00

Stop by Whimzee's between now & Saturday to save 50% off all CHRISTMAS, WINTER & SNOW merchandise!!!!

All Paper & Embellishments for Christmas, Winter & Snow are 50% off until Saturday, July 31st!

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs095/1101414052940/archive/1103587934427.html

'All Halloween/Fall 50% off at Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio'

2010-07-20T18:55:00.000-07:00

Wednesday July 21 through Saturday July 24
Get 50% off all in stock Halloween & Fall Merchandise!

'All Halloween/Fall 50% off at Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio'

Whimzee's July #1 Newsletter & Coupon

2010-07-13T14:18:00.000-07:00

Don't miss all the events at Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio this summer!

Check out our latest newsletter for a calendar, new store hours, where to find us online list and a coupon!

'Whimzee's July/Aug Calendar & a New Coupon in this Newsletter'

New Whimzee's Newsletter is Out!

2010-06-28T17:05:00.000-07:00

Don't miss the latest issue of the Whimzee's Newsletter with our new hours and July Event Calendar! We have lot's of crops scheduled, so hurry & call the store to save space in the one (or more!) that is most convenient for you!

There is also a coupon for 20% off an entire purchase, this week only! So be sure to print it out & bring it to the store by Saturday, July 3rd.

'Special Announcement: Whimzee's Hours to Change'

'Whimzee's Passport to Creativity Starts FRIDAY!'

2010-06-10T23:04:00.000-07:00

'Whimzee's Passport to Creativity Starts FRIDAY!'

Don't miss this weekend's Passport to Creativity, a papercrafters dream hop to 4 Washington County stores. Start at Whimzee's in Beaverton, pick up your passport and map to the other 3 stores.

10am to 6pm Friday, Saturday and Sunday

4 FREE Make 'n Takes
Giveaway Drawings in Each Store
Visit all 4 stores, Fill your passport with Stamps & Enter to win the $400 Grand Prize Basket!!!

Attn: Portland Area Papercrafters...the Passport to Creativity Weekend is coming

2010-06-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

Don't miss this weekend's Passport to Creativity!

Tour 4 papercrafting centers in Washington County, Oregon.

Create a FREE make 'n take in each store.

Grab a Passport at your first stop and have it stamped in each store.

When you have 4 stamps, you'll be entered to win the $400 Grand Prize!

Also enter to win a prize in each store you visit!

Stores participating in the PASSPORT to Creativity Weekend

Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio, Beaverton

Paper Parachute, Hillsboro

Art on a Lark, Hillsboro

The Accidental Bookmaker, Forest Grove

Stop in at Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio in Beaverton to pick up your Passport!

16630 SW Shaw Street, Suite K

Beaverton, OR 97007

Call the store with questions...

503.259.9130

See you this weekend on your creative travels!

'Whimzee's HUGE Clean it up...Clear it out! Sale starts Monday!'

2010-05-25T16:27:00.000-07:00

Don't miss the HUGE sale going on at Whimzee's this week.

You can read all about it in the latest issue of our newsletter!

'Whimzee's HUGE Clean it up...Clear it out! Sale starts Monday!'

Get one entry in our daily drawing for $25 worth of scrapbooking supplies for every $25 you spend on both clearance & regular priced merchandise!

Monday's winner is Beth Constantine!

Our hours are 10am to 6pm now through Saturday.

We'll be closed Sunday and Monday of Memorial Day Weekend.

30% off Coupon in this Issue of the Whimzee's Newsletter

2010-05-10T22:58:00.000-07:00

Check out this Week's Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio Newsletter.
Don't forget to print & clip your 30% off Designer Sale Coupon and use it on your next trip to Whimzee's in Beaverton.

'The Sale is Coming & a Coupon from Whimzee's!'

'Nat'l Scrapbook Weekend Sale @Whimzee's FRI, SAT & SUNDAY!!!'

2010-04-29T23:33:00.000-07:00

Click the link to see our flyer with all the info. about this weekend's National Scrapbook Weekend Sale at Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio. We have a Designer Sale going on all weekend long and special promotions for each day.

We will be open for the sale Friday 10am to 11pm, Saturday 10am to 10pm and Sunday 10am to 8pm.

Call the store for more information...503.259.9130

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs095/1101414052940/archive/1103352096000.html

Read Julie's First Article for the Oregon Women's Report

2010-03-18T09:09:00.001-07:00

Check out Julie's First Article for the Oregon Women's Report website. She is now a featured writer over there, sharing her musings about the world of scrapbooking. If you have any fun article ideas for her, leave us a comment here & share with us!

Signs of a scrapbook addict

Remember to leave a comment over there too! Let Oregon Women's Report know how fun it is to be a scrapbooker! :) If you like what you find over there, you can sign up to receive updates when new content is posted on their site.

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Reminisce Passport Collection Layouts by Our Online Community Members

2010-02-23T16:38:00.000-08:00

Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio is proud to introduce the creations of our Whimzee's Girls Online Community Members! All of the layouts in this post have been created by our online community members using Reminisce's Passports Collection papers and stickers. Each one of the layouts is an original creation. The photos in these layouts were taken by the designers and their friends & families. Many of the layouts feature additional papers and embellishments added by the designers.

We want to share them with you so you can use them to inspire your next creation! Whimzee's carries many of these destinations in our stock everyday. We weren't able to order all of them, they would take over the whole store! So we chose the papers & stickers that our customers request most often for their travel pages.

While the layouts featured here are all of the ones we have hanging in the store right now, they are definitely not all we anticipate receiving back from our Onine Community members. So we'll be updating the blog often with all the new creations we receive.

We still have many destinations available! So get in on all the fun! Sign up for our Online Community and then stop by the store to chose your favorite destination. Create a layout for us to display in the store, share it on your page on the Online Community and we'll share it here on the blog.

And now...enjoy the creativity of our designers...

Destinations still available to Online Community members:

Hawaii
Venezuela
Berlin
Spain
Canada
Grand Canyon
China
Swiss Alps
Florence
Bahamas
New England
Egypt
Aruba
Montreal
The Rockies
Amsterdam
United States
Texas
Brazil
Tokyo
Czech Republic
Las Vegas
Napa Valley
Madrid
Milan
Hong Kong
Norway
Barcelona
Vancouver, Canada
France
Tennessee
Austria
Toronto

HUGE Sale at Whimzee's Starts TODAY, Jan. 25th

2010-01-25T13:03:00.000-08:00

Click to learn all about Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio's Winter Purge Sale! Get awesome deals with different specials each day while you help us whittle our inventory for the big count this weekend! There's a coupon in the link too! Stop by the store at 16630 SW Shaw Street, Suite K, Beaverton, Oregon, 97007 or call for more info. (503) 259-9130!

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Whimzee's January #1 Newsletter is Here!

2010-01-06T00:00:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to check out the latest Whimzee's Newsletter for all the fun events happening at the store and in our online community!

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Some Holiday Ideas from Our Favorite Vendors!!!

2009-12-14T23:53:00.000-08:00

I want to share a little holiday gift with all of you! I've looked through all the holiday papers at the store and compiled this list of holiday projects from our vendors blogs and galleries. As I write this, we still have papers from all of these collections in stock! So if something strikes your fancy, hurry to Whimzee's and pick it up before it slips away with the holiday season! These are some of my favorite vendor's holiday ideas!

Check out this beautiful project on Graphic 45's blog! It's a Santa display using their Christmas Past collection...we've still got a few sheets left, hurry in! I've also got a layout from this collection (detail photo above) on my blog as the Layout of the Week this week!

Download some cool gift tags and even some Christmas photo card templates from Kaisercraft's blog.

We have just a few sheets of American Crafts' Merrymint collection left! Check out their blog for the Merrymint Week Challenge!

If you love our new cardstocks from Core'dinations, you'll really love their blog! I love the embossed polka dot card! Check out all the wonderful ideas for using their cardstock with sand paper!

Looking for a new snowflake card idea? Find it on the Spotted Canary, the EK Success blog.

I love to create mini albums to help house my holiday memories! This star shaped one was created with Reminisce's shimmery Santa's Workshop 2009 collection...we still have a few sheets of these papers left!

Be sure to check out My Mind's Eye's blog for a project for each of the 12 days of Christmas!

Don't forget to try our great selection of Best Creations glitter cardstock, for only $2.50 per sheet, it will add the perfect 'bling' to all your holiday projects. This is our favorite glitter cardstock, it can be cut on the Cricut and the glitter never flakes off! Try some on your next project!

If you're looking to create beautiful Hanukkah cards and scrapbook pages, be sure to take a look at our Hanukkah papers from EK Success.

Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio Holiday Open House, 12/1/2009

2009-11-30T17:55:00.000-08:00

Thanks for stopping by! It's been a very busy couple of weeks for the Whimzee's Girls! In addition to preparing for the holidays at home with our families, we've been gearing up for our Holiday Open House. If you're a scrapbooker, card maker or paper crafter in the Portland Metro area, you don't want to miss the Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio Holiday Open House!

We have all sorts of special purchase merchandise, page kits and holiday paper packs marked down just for the party! Stop by to stock up on all the new large rhinestones and felt self adhesive laser cut ribbon from Kaisercraft at AWESOME prices!

Please call the store to RSVP! (503) 259-9130

Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio
16630 SW Shaw Street, Suite K
Beaverton, Oregon 97007

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009
5:00pm to 7:00pm

We'll have snacks, drinks & Holiday Wish Lists for you to fill out!

Don't forget to call & register for Julie's Holiday Fold Out Mini Album Class this Saturday, December 5th from 10am to 1pm. $10 Fee plus supplies

See you at the store!

PS - for directions, check out our map at the top in the right side column of this blog.

A Little Christmas Inspiration

2009-11-23T10:37:00.000-08:00

This DVD case is a fun holiday project if you're looking for a great way to package those DVD's of photos you're sending to the relatives this year. Don't worry, if you're not sending out photo DVD's this year, our instructor had a great idea for this case. She said that she uses it to house a special holiday music CD she creates each year for family and friends. Not being a big baker, she uses gives it as a hostess gift when others might give baked bread or goodies. And if you aren't looking to give DVD's or CD's this year, take a close look at the project and 'scraplift' it into a card or scrapbook page.

Twila & I made these at the Craft Fest event we attended a couple weeks ago, sponsored by EK Success and Petersen Arne. The project featured K & Company's new Christmas collection Evergreen by designer Brenda Walton. We used the paper pad from this collection which is perfect for card makers and those of you who create albums smaller than 12 x 12. Another winner is the adhesive border pack, this pack is full of borders that are great for trimming to the size you need or using as is. While we didn't order from this collection, you may be able to find it elsewhere. We did order the small paper pads and adhesive borders from a couple other collections, so be on the look out for those in the store. We loved using these products in creating the DVD case and we're sure you'll love them too!

Don't forget to call the store (503) 259-9130 to RSVP for our Holiday Open House, Tuesday, December 1st from 5pm to 7pm. We'll have tons of great deals on our class page kits and also some fun special purchase collections. Check out all the new holiday creations the Whimzee's Girls have been working on and be inspired to create some new things for your holiday gift giving list!

One last thing...stop by our online scrapbooking community and check out all the new projects that our members are uploading daily. We'll have a cool giveaway just for online community members as soon as we reach 25 members who have uploaded projects! We're on our way and can't wait for you to join us! We have an event calendar over there with all our crops & events listed!

Twila & Julie Get Creative!

2009-11-13T13:15:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post to share a very cool project with you! Twila & I attended Craft Fest on Tuesday, put on by EK Success and Petersen Arne. We had fun seeing all the great new products...and yes, ordering lot's of them! So be looking in your newsletter for all the fun stuff as soon as it arrives, and you can always follow me on Twitter to get the first updates!

I thought I'd share our first project from Craft Fest! We got to "Bling" these cool bags by Carolyn Gavin! We used EK's Hotfix tool and Jolee's Jewels Swarovski Crystals. It was so fun to be able to choose where you wanted the crystals to go and then just push down on them with the tool and voila...in 20 seconds, crystals were attached! You can attach them to just about anything! We ordered some of these bags and the cool turquoise ones, along with some of the crystals and a couple Hotfix tools. We'll let you know as soon as they arrive!

I'll be back next week to share more of the cool projects from Craft Fest! See you in the store!

Holiday Card & Project Ideas from All Around the Web

2009-11-03T15:42:00.000-08:00

In case you haven't checked a calendar in a while, it's November! Yes, NOVEMBER! And that means it's time to get going on all those holiday projects you promised yourself you'd work on this year. We'd love to see what you're working on! If you need some time away from the family to actually get any of your projects done, we totally understand. That's why we're having a crop every Monday night in November, 5pm to 10pm, $5 crop fee (waived with a purchase of $25 or more). Call the store now to sign up (503) 259-9130. We still have our Friday night crops from 6pm to 11pm, but recently they've been filling up fast, so we've added a Monday crop to our schedule. We also still have table time for $1 per hour during the days while the store is open, call to save your space. And for those of you who need more than just a few hours to work on your projects, call to sign up for our All Day crop, November 28th, 10am to 10pm, $10 crop fee (waived with a purchase of $50 or more). Call now to sign up!

And once you're signed up for a crop and know you'll have some time to get some work done, check out these sites for some great holiday inspiration, cards, projects and fun gift ideas.

As we mentioned in the newsletter, there's a great article featuring simple holiday cards & instructions in the November issue of Scrapbook Ellaments online magazine. Sign up & have the magazine sent to your inbox every month, stuffed full of fun ideas.

Sign up for Jessica Sprague's FREE online class Holidays In Hand, where Jessica will help us create a December album full of all the memories from this December. Click HERE to go to Jessica's website, on the opening page, scroll down for the info. on the class.

Another beautiful December album is featured on designer, Ali Edwards's blog right now. Ali creates a December Daily album every year. She shows us how she prepared her book for this year, creating a special page for each day, where she'll add some journaling and a photo for each day in December.

(Personally, I've checked out Ali's album and signed up for Jessica's class. I'm excited to try this for December. If I can get my album done in November, I think I'll be able to fill it in a bit each day. I think I'll combine some of each designer's ideas and come up with my own book. If everyone likes this idea, I can teach a class on it next Fall...let me know!)

If holiday party invitations are on your to-do list, check out check out the holiday invitations on the Make Your Own Invitations blog. They love to have people submit great invitations they've created for inclusion in the blog, I'm submitting some of mine soon.

Here are 25 Holiday Quotes from Creating Keepsakes to download & print and use on your holiday cards, layouts & other projects.

On Creating Keepsakes's blog, I found a cute envelope for that DVD of photos you've been meaning to send to the relatives. Put it in the envelope and send it as their Christmas gift!

I was going to include individual links on to this one, but the home page of Paper Crafts magazine's webpage has so many cool ideas, I thought I'd just link to it & let you choose what you like best. They have 12 online bonus projects for cards & gift ideas, along with a great idea for using recycled Christmas cards you received last year as your cards for this year...such a cool green idea!

Of course, search through the web for holiday ideas just wouldn't be complete without a visit to the craft diva herself, Martha Stewart. Now, I was one of those who used to follow Martha, but kind of got out of the habit when I started to find all these other sources for craft ideas. But lately, I've found myself coming back to Martha for her sense of style and ideas that seem easier to me now than her old ideas did way back then. So check out Martha's Christmas Ideas page for all sorts of fun Christmas ideas. If you give a lot of gift cards, give them a little of your personality this year and check out these great gift card holders.

And just to "toot my own horn" a bit, if you're looking for a nice project to create for your home or to give to a special friend, check out my H-O-M-E project article which is featured in Scrapbooking.com Magazine this month, complete with photos & instructions. I was very excited to be asked to write this article and have my project featured this month. As always, remember to check out my blog JulieChats, to see my latest Layout of the Week or browse through my "Get Your Creative On" section of blogs from all over the web.

You can sign up to have updates to this blog and/or my blog emailed to your account.

Twila's Coaster Set

2009-10-19T22:58:00.000-07:00

The holiday season is coming soon and we've got a great gift idea for you. Twila created this beautiful set of coasters using Kaisercraft's Beyond the Page collection mdf coaster set. She painted the coasters & holder red and covered them with papers from Graphic 45's Domestic Goddess collection. Give this coaster set a try, if you're looking for a fun, easy gift to make for family & friends this year. They would look great covered with photos, paper or a combination of both. Be sure to cover them with a water resistant coating, such as Mod Podge.

Paperbag Mini Album - 4th of July

2009-10-14T17:31:00.001-07:00

If you're looking for a fun mini album idea, that's also economical, you really should check this one out! This mini album came to us from our customer Gina Smith. It's made from small paper bags and is covered with all sorts of great 4th of July embellishments. Tags, photos & memorabilia fill every page and are tucked into each bag.

We don't know about you, but we all can't wait to give this album idea a try!

Thanks for sharing Gina!

20% off almost everything, Monday October 12th!!!

2009-10-11T17:29:00.001-07:00

Whimzee's is having a Columbus Day Sale! 20% off almost everything in the store, even markdowns! We're only holding out a very few new arrivals from this storewide sale! We just FILLED the tables with all sorts of great deals! Find Halloween, Christmas, Albums & much more, marked down plus an additional 20% off!

Everything (almost) in the store, 20% off!

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Nana's Coupons Mini Book

2009-10-06T21:33:00.000-07:00

This week we're featuring a mini book created by Gina Smith's mom for her daughter. The book is full of cute coupons for a little girl to redeem for fun activities with her grandma.

Cheerleader Mini Album by Gina Smith

2009-09-29T09:00:00.000-07:00

Fall is here, and that means the kids are busy with sports & activities! This mini album was created by Whimzee's customer, Gina Smith. Gina used our custom high school papers from Stamping Station and a 7 Gypsies album. (Album size is 6" x 8", page size is 6" x 6".) This album showcases Gina's daughter's youth cheerleading experience. (After reading the article, scroll down to see the inside pages.) This album shows us that you don't have to have a child in high school to use these cool custom papers. You might use them to create an album for your child's youth sports season. And if you do have a high schooler, you could use this idea to create an album celebrating a special event in your child's high school years. Still need some ideas...how about marching band, science fairs, school plays, homecoming, drill team or just freshman year. Twila scraplifted this idea and created a mini album she plans to use to document her son's high school football season at Aloha. We'll share her album soon!

Yes, we all scraplift, even those of us who are seasoned scrappers, in fact seasoned scrappers probably to scraplift more often than beginners. Scraplifting is a term used by scrapbookers to describe borrowing an idea from another scrapbooker. You might recreate an entire page layout from the design to the papers & embellishments used. You might use another person's design and placement of page elements while using different papers & embellishments. You might borrow only the color scheme of the layout, card or project. These are all forms of scraplifting.

For those of you out there who are beginners, don't be afraid to scraplift! In scrapbooking, we consider it the highest form of flattery when someone appreciates one of our creations enough to scraplift it!

My Favorites Mini Album by Gina Smith

2009-09-21T01:21:00.000-07:00

We are so happy that Gina Smith has shared some of her original creations with us! This week, we feature Gina's My Favorites Mini Album. On each page, is a journal box where her daughter wrote a list of her favorite things, from TV shows to candy, video games & even school subjects. Now she'll always have this cute record of her favorite things when she was 11. Gina used Bo Bunny's Double Dot papers to create this album. She used the dotted side of the paper on the front side of each page and its solid side on the back of each page. This technique creates a rainbow effect when the book is viewed as a whole project. Check back next week to see another of Gina's mini albums.

Meet Carol Nelson, Our Newest Card Class Instructor

2009-09-21T00:46:00.000-07:00

We are excited introduce our newest card class instructor, Carol Nelson. Carol's first class at Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio will be Monday, September 28th from 6:30pm to 7:00pm, $7.00 fee. Call the store to sign up for Carol's class 503.590.8806. She will help us create the two Halloween cards shown here.

Carol wants to introduce herself to all of us, so read on & meet Carol with us....

I have lived in Hillsboro for 5 years now, having retired from Customer Service in the electronics industry in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Now I finally have the time to do the things I love, making cards and other paper projects, sewing and gardening.

I always try to make cards that are simple and can be used for many occasions with little or no modification. I use every little scrap that I can to get the most out of one piece of paper. And I love embellishments!

I sell my cards at a couple of local stores and participate in the Red Sled Bazaar in Sherwood every Christmas. I have also taught at the Peddler's Pack in Beaverton.

I hope you will join me for this class. All you need is a ruler, a pair of scissors and your enthusiasm!

I am always open to suggestions, so if you see something you would like to see me make, please let me know.

Hope to see you at one of my classes soon!

Our Newest Arrival - Glue Pads

2009-09-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

While checking out some of my favorite blogs this morning, I came across a very cute layout that showcases one of our newest products, the Glue Pad. I've never used the Glue Pad, but I know it can be used with all your stamps & glitter to achieve a cool look on your layouts. One of my favorite blogs, CreativitE, by Erin Bassett, has a recent post showing how you can add a beautiful embellishment to your projects using a Glue Pad & glitter. Check it out HERE!

I can't wait to try it! Thanks to Erin for giving me a great idea to include on my next layout!

FREE Beginning Scrapbooking Classes!!!

2009-09-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

I know we've been advertising our Beginning Scrapbooking Classes in our newsletter, but I thought it would be a good idea to give a quick breakdown of the classes here for everyone who reads the blog. The Whimzee's Girls are teaching the Beginning Scrapbooking Classes together with Marlene Fuller, our favorite Canon Representative to the Scrapbooking Industry. The classes will be held in the Hillsboro Library's Main Branch on Sundays and its Shute Park Branch on Saturdays.

Please go to the library's calendar for a more detailed class description, required supply list and other information. Call the library at (503) 615-6500 to register for each class you plan to take.

The two hour classes are FREE and open to everyone (ages 6th grade & up). Each class will have its own theme. During the class, you will create a two page layout from a kit based on a sketch. While putting together your kit, you will learn a different basic scrapbooking technique for each class.

You are free to take one class or as many as you like!

9.12.2009, CLASS CANCELED!
Saturday, September 12th 2pm to 4pm Theme: Back to School @Shute Park Branch

Sunday, September 20th 1pm to 3pm Theme: Beach @Main Library

Saturday, October 3rd 2pm to 4pm Theme: Fall (Halloween) @Shute Park Branch

Sunday, October 11th 1pm to 3pm Theme: Birthday @Main Library

Saturday, November 7th 2pm to 4pm Theme: Baby Boy or Baby Girl @Shute Park Branch

Sunday, November 8th 1pm to 3pm Theme: Holiday (Christmas) @Main Library

Please come back here after you take a class & let us know what you think & how we could improve it! We love feedback, especially since this is our first attempt at a series of classes. We'd also love to hear what types of classes you would like us to have at the store in the future!

Meet Our Friend Ella!

2009-09-08T20:09:00.000-07:00

When I think about it, I'm so surprised at all the cool people I've met and websites I've stumbled upon as a result of being on Twitter. My latest discovery is a very cool website that just published its first eZine this month. (In case you didn't know, an eZine, is a magazine found only on the internet.) Scrapbook Ellaments is a brand new monthly scrapbooking eZine published by Ella Publishing. This month's issue has tips for all those Photoshop users out there and a great free journaling quiz download. The journaling quiz, is a 4" x 6" printable box, complete with questions & blanks for you to fill in your answers. The article has lot's of layouts using the journaling quiz in different ways. I've already printed mine & I can't wait to use it! I'll share my layout with you as soon as I get it done!

One of the great features of Ella Publishing is the downloadable eBooks they sell. You can find all sorts of scrapbooking & photography eBooks for less than $6. Just download them to your computer and read them right there or print them out.

I think this website can be a great source of information and inspiration for all of us scrapbookers! Check it out and I'm sure you'll be just as hooked on it as I am!

Of course, I can share all the cool scrapbooking things I find with you even quicker, if you sign up to follow @JulieChats on Twitter!

Graphic 45 Helps Us Release Our Inner Domestic Goddess

2009-08-25T22:47:00.000-07:00

You may not be the perfect housekeeper, chef or seamstress, but that shouldn't stop you from picking up the retro papers from Graphic 45's new Domestic Goddess collection. The 10 new double-sided printed papers and die cut tag sheet showcase a lot of June Cleaver types going about their duties. The 1950's are alive again on these wonderful, colorful papers.

Use them to make some humorous cards for your girlfriends, joking about who's got the best cooking...or take out skills. Use them in your heritage album...make a page with those photos of mom or grandma cooking or sewing. Or use them like I plan to...make something for mom to use in her sewing room. I'm thinking of using them to cover one of those multi-drawer wooden boxes from IKEA. (I'm sure you've got one in your craft room right now.) Don't hold me to it, but if I can get it done before Christmas, I promise to share it with you. I think it would make an awesome gift for not much money!

'Tis the Season to Get the New Graphic 45 Christmas Collection

2009-08-25T22:37:00.000-07:00

Make Graphic 45's new Christmas Past collection part of your Christmas present this year! We love the 7 double-sided printed papers and the die cut tag sheet that are part of this collection. They bring back memories (or mom's or grandma's memories) of how Christmas used to be. So much magic and celebration, a time when we hand wrote personal notes in each card sent out before handwriting the addresses on the envelopes and choosing a favorite Christmas stamp to match.

Use these beautiful papers to scrap your Christmases past or present. Or use them to create one-of-a-kind cards to send to your family and friends this holiday season. Remember to bring your creations by the store to share with the Whimzee's Girls. Let us know if it's ok to photograph them & use them on the blog. We'd love to put together a slideshow of holiday creations to inspire all of us!

Photography - A BIG Part of Scrapbooking

2009-08-21T10:27:00.000-07:00

Recently I completed the digital photography class at the store. Although the class is focused mostly on SLR cameras (the big ones with interchangeable lenses), I learned tons of cool things about my little point & shoot. So if you're looking for some hands on instruction for your camera, call to sign up for our next class. The next session begins Saturday, October 3rd. The session includes 4 two-hour classes and a small album to keep your assignments in. All this in a class taught by our favorite photography diva, Marlene Fuller, who represents Canon, for only $20. Call the store, (503) 259-9130, to reserve your spot. Class sizes are limited, so call soon!

If you're a scrapbooker who reads our blog, but isn't in the Portland area, or just can't make it to our next class, we've got something for you too. I've been cruising around the internet looking for photography tips for scrapbookers. And I've found some great posts & sites where I think everyone can find some useful information.

So check out this list & get more from your photography right now!

KT the Scrapbook Lady's 5 Part Photography Series
Click at the top or bottom for the next post in the series. KT shares photos & tips using each of her cameras.

Tracey Clark's Tips on Photographing Birthdays from Ali Edwards's blog

Kodak's Tips for Scrapbook Photography

Tons of photography ideas from Jill @ A Matter of Memories

How to Take Better Photos from scrapbookscrapbook.com

Photography Tips from wescrap.com

Check out these sites & let us know if you have any favorite photography ideas & tips. We'd love to hear from you, feel free to share other scrapbooking photography sites you've found with the group!

If these tips or our great layout ideas have inspired you, call to sign up for tonight's crop, (503) 259-9130, I'll be working & can't wait to see what you're working on!

See you in the store!

We have a Winner!

2009-08-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

Sorry we're a bit late in announcing the winner of the Follower/Commenter contest from our Store Newsletter.

Congratulations to Anh!

Anh is the winner of $25 worth of Scrapbooking Supplies. Just stop by the store Anh, to pick up your prize!

We'll be having more contests in the future, so be sure to sign up as a Follower to get in on them!

Coming Soon...New Collections from Reminisce

2009-08-08T00:35:00.000-07:00

We've got all sorts of new releases from Reminisce arriving in the store in a few weeks. Check out these cool collections and get your photos together! We'll let you know they're here in the next newsletter after arrive. If you can't wait...sign up to find out about our latest arrivals on Twitter. Just sign up to follow @JulieChats & Julie will tweet about all our latest arrivals!

For now, let these great collections inspire you to get scrapbooking! If that's not enough, check out Reminisce's Blog!

Summer Inspiration Part 2

2009-08-06T01:08:00.001-07:00

Here I am again, up WAY too late cruising the internet getting all inspired to create some new scrapbook layouts! I can't be the only one to cash in on all these great ideas, just waiting to be "scrap-lifted"! Check out some of these cool online idea galleries & blogs...

Creativity Inc.'s Idea Gallery Check out the beautiful layouts featuring Autumn Leaves Acrylic Stamps

Today's Creative Blog Sharing all things creative...

Bo Bunny's Latest Post, an 8 x 8 Birthday Book

Paper Source's Blog Featuring all manner of papercrafting ideas.

Craft Critique's Blog Check it out for the latest on everything in the crafting world, they've got cool photos & videos from the latest CHA convention.

I've found most of these blogs & galleries through twitter & my blog. I can't believe the huge amount of inspiration that's out there when I go looking! I share as much as I can on twitter, so if that's your thing, sign up to follow me @JulieChats. I'm trying to tweet more about what's going on at Whimzee's too. And don't forget to check out my blog JulieChats to find a new layout every week in my Layout of the Week column.

That's all the "Creative-ness" I've got to share right now! See you here next week! New Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio newsletter out next Tuesday, look for it in your inbox or use the brown button on the left to subscribe!

Twila's Baseball Mini Album

2009-07-27T23:30:00.001-07:00

We just don't have enough room in the newsletter to share all the photos we'd like to share with you. That's one more reason why we like our blog so much! Scroll down in this post to see all the cool inside pages of Twila's Baseball Pennant Mini Album. She created it using the Party Banner Mini Chipboard book from Creative Imaginations's Bare Elements collection and our new baseball papers & cardstock stickers from Reminisce. Of course she added some ribbon, felt & other embellishments along the way too! Check it out!

New Karen Foster Collections

2009-07-27T23:30:00.000-07:00

In stock right now! 4 new collections from Karen Foster: Soccer, Volleyball, Wine & Birthday. Check them out here. Read below each photo for a description of the matching embellishments for each collection. Hurry in to the store to buy yours now!

Available to match the new Soccer papers from Karen Foster: Clearly Stickers, Cardstock Stickers & Bubble Brads

Available to match the new Volleyball papers from Karen Foster: Clearly Stickers

Available to match the new Wine papers from Karen Foster: Clearly Stickers, Cardstock Stickers (Italy, France & Bon Appetit), Treasure Brads & Stacked Stickers (3D diecut stickers)

Available to match the new Birthday papers from Karen Foster: Sparkle Burst Brads, Cardstock Stickers, Bubble Brads & a Happy Birthday Stacked Statement (3D diecut sticker)

SMOOCH Inks "How to Video"

2009-07-27T07:54:00.000-07:00

Check out this video for a demonstration using SMOOCH inks to create a card. Fast forward the video, to about the 6 minute mark, to see a beautiful scrapbook layout & 2 finished cards. We've got lot's of colors of SMOOCH inks & glitters in stock, in the store now!

Get Answers Column...info.

2009-07-22T14:32:00.000-07:00

In order to see the questions, ask questions or respond to questions in our new "Get Answers" column (on the right side of this blog), you must sign in. Signing in is easy, you first set up an account with Google. If you've got GMAIL, or a Blogger account, you already have one. We're hoping that this column will bring together the Whimzee's Girls, our customers & our blog followers in all sorts of scrapbooking & paper crafting discussions. We'd like to hear your questions & suggestions for the store & the blog here. And we'd love to hear your responses to our questions and those of the other online Whimzee's Girls. I've set up a few questions to get us started. We encourage you to join in our discussions, let's get chatting about all things scrapbook! :)

What's New from Bo Bunny

2009-07-20T22:20:00.000-07:00

Twila's been passing me all sorts of fun emails lately, full of new product releases. The latest is from Bo Bunny. It looks like their designers have been hard at work with all the new collections coming out soon. Here's a sneak peek of their latest creations:

Delilah

Flutter Butter

Kitchen Spice

Gypsy

Boo Crew

Tis' the Season

St. Nick

I can't wait to see them all! I'm already planning some great layouts in my head! Leave us a comment and let us know which are your favorites!

Coming soon from Pink Paislee

2009-07-17T15:52:00.000-07:00

Twila sent me a link to view all the cool new CHA releases for Pink Paislee. Let us know which ones are your favorites! While I was there, I checked out their blog. They have tons of cool ideas, one for making your jelly, jam, pickle jars look really cute before you give them as gifts. Click HERE to see it.

We hope you're enjoying all our tips, ideas & inspirational info. this summer! Let us know which scrapbook suppliers' products are your favorites. Also tell us which products you'd like to see us carry. We want to use this blog as a way to communicate with our customers in a personal way that allows us to see what it is you'd like to see or do at Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio!

Use the Question/Answer column on the right side of the blog to ask questions & share your answers to others' questions. We know not all of us have the answers to every question, but that some of us have the answers to some questions! So use the Whimzee's Girls Online community as a sounding board for all your scrapbooking & crafting ideas! Thanks for your help!

Some Summer Scrapbook Inspiration!

2009-07-12T11:28:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! We know that sometimes the summer seems to drag on. It can be so hot that it drains all your creative energy or the weather can be so yucky, you get depressed. Of course we all have tons of fun too! But even too much fun can drain your creativity! So look no further, the Whimzee's Girls have put together a great list of places all over the world wide web where you can go to get that jolt of scrapbook inspiration. After checking out these cool sites, come by the store to stock up on all the papers & embellishments you'll need to get your creative engines running! If you've got your own blog, post some photos of your creations & leave us a link to check them out. If you'd love to share but don't have a blog, save your photos to a disk & bring them by the store with a note that they're for the blog.

Some great sketches with a load of example pages for each one!

Click on Sunday Scrappin's brown button on the left, to find a new inspiration each week! Sign up to participate or just click on the list of participants to see their project in that week's theme.

Be sure to check out Ali Edwards's Blog. Such cool tips & projects from our fellow Oregonian & designer extraordinaire!

My choice for coolest blog layout belongs to Katie the Scrapbook Lady! Don't miss her site and all her great ideas!

Jessica Sprague's site has something for everyone! Great ideas and classes, I'm taking her Photo Editing: Frame Up & Special Effects right now.

For scrapping tips & articles check out the Scrapbook Fairy Blog. She's also got some cool ideas in the gallery on her web page for her scrapbook design business.

More cool sketches at <"">

And great videos, cards, stamping, scrapping & more at The Pink Stamper

Don't miss Stephanie Howell's blog for some beautiful layouts and photography to match. Scroll down & browse through to find the inspiration you're looking for!

Of course I can't end an article full of fun inspiration without including the cool new button I designed for my blog. Don't miss my Layout of the Week series!

If you're on Twitter sign up to follow me @JulieChats for Whimzee's updates & all the scrapbooking stuff I can find to share. Oh and of course just some tweets about what's going on at home too!

Little Yellow Bicycle...Ideas from CHA

2009-07-02T14:19:00.000-07:00

If the summer heat has got you down, crank up that AC & check out this awesome slideshow. All these photos were from CHA last Spring. This group is from Little Yellow Bicycle. We've got most of these collections in the store now, if the inspiration bug really bites you! I can't wait to work with some of this cute Baby Boy Safari paper!

So, grab that ice tea, sit back & relax! Let the Whimzee's Girls give you that new inspiration you need!

Check back here next week for more great inspiration for your layouts, cards & paper crafting projects!

Melissa Shares Her Latest Creations

2009-06-23T15:49:00.001-07:00

Our friend Melissa Tallman is one very creative lady! You can check out these two layouts and many others she has created hanging around the store now! Melissa has a beautiful clean style that runs through all of her layouts. She used papers from one of her favorite companies, October Afternoon, in these layouts. When I commented on this great layout using a combination of paper strips, she laughed and said she had "scraplifted" this idea from a magazine. Of course the original layout looked nothing like this! Melissa used that layout more like a sketch in and idea book and gathered her own combination of papers & supplies to create the look she wanted to use with her photo. This is a great tip to remember the next time you're looking at other people's layouts. Remember that you don't have to recreate an entire layout down to the last embellishment to be inspired by another scrapper's creation. You might "scraplift" just the layout or maybe just the color combination. We all run out of ideas from time to time and looking at other layouts as if they are sketches, can help get you back on track with some quick page ideas. Maybe you already have a stash of supplies but aren't sure how to combine them to create a beautiful page. Look through our ideas here on the blog & in the store and check out some of the thousands of scrapbooking blogs on the internet...you're sure to get inspired & turn out that awesome page in no time!

One last tip from Melissa, be sure to check out the backsides of your patterned paper the next time you're looking for the perfect background! The dictionary theme background paper for her "Enrich" layout, is actually the backside of a very cute, bright cherry patterned paper. While most people's first instinct would be to use the front side of this paper in their layout, Melissa appreciated the understated look of this paper. She chose to use it as the background for her page, rubbing the edge roughly with a light blue ink pad to tie her color theme together throughout the page.

Graduation Shadow Box

2009-06-09T12:59:00.000-07:00

If you're looking for a graduation gift, check out my latest blog post. I created this shadow box last week as a gift for my niece's graduation. Read about how I created it on my blog, JulieChats.

See you in the store! :) -Julie

National Scrapbook Day Sale

2009-05-01T12:44:00.000-07:00

Don't forget to stop by the store tonight or tomorrow!
The National Scrapbook Day Sale starts tonight (Friday, May 1st) at 5pm and continues tomorrow

We've got the tables COVERED with new markdown papers, they are 25% off!

30% off Zach's Life from Little Yellow Bicycle

25% off Creative Cafe

Pick up a page kit featuring My Mind's Eye papers
$10 Value for only $5

Inside the kit, you'll find 4 double-sided, printed papers from My Mind's Eye, along with 4 sheets of coordinating cardstock, 4 die cuts, 4 ft of ribbon & 4 buttons. Use the kit to create at least 2 double-page spreads or tons of cards.

See you in the store!

:) The Whimzee's Girls

Layouts by Kris

2009-04-17T11:08:00.000-07:00

These layouts were all created by Whimzee's Girl Kris Wolfram. I think you'll love the creativity & variety she shows us in each layout. I also like the way she doesn't fill her layouts with photos, but chooses a select few that tell the story and then lets her wonderful designs complement them.

I've been cutting down on the number of photos I use in each layout lately too. I think that this results in a cleaner, simpler layout. I do like to use enlargements too, and you just can't put 10 of them on one page.

Be sure to check out all of Kris's layouts, she's included something for everyone, whether your focus is kids, dogs or something in between! Thanks so much for sharing your talents with us Kris!

And if any of you other Whimzee's Girls out there would like to share your layouts with us, just shoot photos of them, put them on a disk and drop them off at the store. I'll make a slideshow with them & share then with everyone! If you follow our blog, but aren't close to the store, please leave a link to your blog showing your latest layouts in the comment section & we'll do a post with a list of everyone's layouts.

Twila's New Graphic 45 Layout

2009-04-07T12:30:00.000-07:00

Twila just completed this beautiful layout and wanted to share it with all of you. She used Graphic 45's Fashionista collection. Graphic 45's papers are timeless and come in deep, luscious colors to coordinate with so many of your photos. All the little die cut tags & embellishments add depth to any layout. And for a finishing touch, browse our large selection of ribbon to find that perfect one to bring everything together.

Click on over to my blog...

2009-04-01T12:43:00.001-07:00

Hi there everyone! Yes, I'm still working on more photo slideshows so you can see all Twila's CHA photos. But I wanted to let you know that I just posted my latest layout on my blog, JulieChats. It's my first effort at stitching on a layout. I used Cosmo Cricket's new Lil' Man collection. Please comment & let me know what you think. I'd love to hear from you & see what you might add or change to help make my layout look even better! See you in the store soon! :) -Julie

Pink Paislee @ CHA

2009-03-17T00:55:00.000-07:00

I love all the Pink Paislee layouts from CHA! Check out the slideshow with Twila's photos and let it inspire you to create some of the gorgeous layouts designed by Pink Paislee's talented designers!

If you have any problems viewing the Pink Paislee slideshow, click here, for a link the the slideshow on photoshop.com.

Graphic 45 @ CHA

2009-03-09T14:27:00.000-07:00

I know this has been a long time coming! Sorry it's taken so long! This is the first group of almost 200 photos Twila took at CHA last month. I'm going to post them in groups so it will be easier for you to locate the manufacturers you're looking for.

I think you'll love all the creative ways the Graphic 45 designers have used their papers. I'm planning to use them to cover my grandma's train case. After I looked at all these photos, it seems like the perfect surface for a few of these retro Graphic 45 patterns.

Enjoy!

If you have any problems viewing the slideshow, please click on this link to view it on photoshop.com.

Save $5 off CK Portland Vendor Faire Admission

2009-03-02T14:15:00.000-08:00

Thanks for participating in our Fall Back into LOVE with Scrapbooking crop

2009-02-10T13:14:00.000-08:00

We had a great time at the Fall Back into LOVE with Scrapbooking crop! We hope you all did too! Thanks to everyone who participated in our Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something New layout contest. We hope you all received today's newsletter, so you already know that we had a little problem....we misplaced the camera with all the layout photos. We're hoping one of the girls finds the camera in with all her scrapping stuff! Let us know if you come across it. But until then, if you were one of the entrants, please email us at twilamull@aol.com, so we can enter you into a drawing for the prizes.

Twila created these cute layouts with photos she had uploaded during the crop. She tells me she's still perfecting them. She's in the process of making a new album for all the exciting events we have at the store. Check it out next time you stop by!

New Inspiration

2009-01-28T10:54:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I'm in the middle of getting this weekend's layout contest ready for the Fall Back in LOVE with Scrapbooking crop, but I had to take a minute to post some cool new stuff. Our Whimzee Girl Carol sent me a YouTube link to some videos from CHA. There are tons of videos available from lot's of our favorite vendors. I can't wait to see what Twila ordered, but I thought you might enjoy checking out this video of the American Craft booth. AC makes the THICKERS alphabets we all love to use. So check this out & be sure to call and reserve your space for this weekend's crop. I know you're all going to love the layout contest. You can win some cool prizes and I know you'll love all the inspiration you'll get from seeing everyone else's layouts. Remember to bring your cameras, so you can snap a few pics & use the ideas you love later!

One more thing...here's a cool scrapbooking site with all sorts of ideas and links to other videos from CHA....The Pink Donut

Don't Miss Our Warehouse Sale!

2009-01-14T14:07:00.000-08:00

The Whimzee's Girls want to make sure that you mark your calendars for this weekend's Warehouse Sale.

We've gotten a hold of a bonus space near the store, so we can have a HUGE sale! Twila has found so many things to include in the sale. Not only will we have lot's of scrapbooking and papercrafting merchandise marked 50% to 90% off, but we have tons of collectibles.

Through the years, Twila has had a few shops, including Main Street Collectibles and Whimzee's Gifts & Scrapbook Nook, before her current Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio. And has she ever managed to hold onto a huge collection of collectibles.

We'll have:

Pooh Bear, both Classic Pooh and Disney Pooh

Beanie Babies (bears & other animals)

Lucy Bears (some signed by the artist)

Cherished Teddies

(Being close to 9 years old, we're pretty sure they're all retired!)

We also have collectible plush from:

Mary Meyer

Gund

Cottage Collectibles

Stop by Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio, 16630 SW Shaw Street, Suite K, Beaverton, OR 97007

Call for directions or more information: (503) 259-9130

We're located West of Beaverton, one block South of TV Hwy, between 160th & 170th streets.

Quick Holiday Thank You Cards

2009-01-08T22:33:00.000-08:00

I know I mentioned this idea in my last newsletter, so I thought I'd show you how the Holiday Thank You cards turned out. When I first saw Luxe's new Color Me Festive Paper, I just knew my daughter, Delaney, would love it. I thought it would be perfect for her to use to make Thank You cards. Our cards were pretty simple, but you could use this same idea with a few more sophisticated supplies to create your own beautiful holiday cards.

Delaney loves to color, so this paper is perfect for her! She chose to use her colored pencils to color a few of the cute sketched designs. Then I cut them out for her and she used the Tombo adhesive to put them on the front of her cards.

For the cards, I pulled some, Hot Off the Press cards out of my stash and let Delaney choose which design to use for each recipient. I added a little ribbon to each card and Delaney used the inside to write her Christmas Thank You's. Delaney loved being able to make her own cards, so this project was perfect. It would be a great one to do with your kids too!

Just a little note from Whimzee's: Be sure to read your newsletter next week for all the Warehouse Sale and Weekend Crop details! We're planning a lot of fun events for 2009 and we'll be asking for everyone's opinions on all sorts of things. So feel free to comment here on the blog if there is something you're interested in learning about or chatting with us about! Hope you all had a very Happy New Year! We're excited for 2009, see you at the store!

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #1

2008-12-06T01:01:00.000-08:00

(Please do not copy our photos or text and paste into another site or print them out. Instead, please pass on a link to our site to anyone who may find this online class useful. Thank you!)

For this class, I'm sharing the steps I went through to create my first acrylic album. I know that many of you are curious about these albums and are looking for ideas to help you create your own. During my creative process, I looked through scrapbooking magazines, idea books and websites. I gathered my favorite ideas and techniques to create an original acrylic album as a 40th Birthday gift for my friend Teresa. Teresa's 40th Birthday Party was a Barndance with a Western theme, so I used that theme to begin my search through Whimzee's Scrapbook Studio for the supplies to create the album.

In this class, I explain the techniques I used to create each page of the album. Please feel free to use this class as a rough guideline in the creation of your own acrylic album. It is not my intention that your album be an exact copy of mine. I think that it's important to find your own theme and supplies that suite your theme. If you need help developing a plan for your album, I'd love to hear your questions in the comment sections in this blog. Also, we'd love to help you choose your supplies at the store, just ask one of the Whimzee's Girls for help on your next visit.

Most of all, don't be afraid to embark on your own acrylic album adventure. The final product will be a beautiful, one-of-a-kind collection of memories of your special event. I'd love to see photos of your creations! Good Luck & see you in the store!

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #2

2008-12-06T00:59:00.000-08:00

After deciding to make an acrylic album, my first step was to choose the size, I choose 6”x6”. The album I chose came with 3 silver hinged rings and is packaged in a shimmery gold bag, perfect for gift giving. We have some great new acrylic albums in the store from Clear Scraps & Bo Bunny.

My next step was to head for the Western & Farm section in the store. I was looking for a selection of papers that would include red, blue and some neutrals. A red bandana pattern by Creative Imaginations, was the first to catch my eye. Next, I found a blue bandana pattern with horses in its pattern by Karen Foster. Then, I remembered a floral on a red background that reminded me of calico, it’s a fun paper named Organic Poppy by Bo Bunny. It isn’t Western but I thought I could work it in with my theme. I headed back to the Western section and found a paper with a pile of rope on it named Lasso by Karen Foster. I added a brown & white lined “notebook” paper by Creative Café. Next, I came a cross a denim print, Blue Jean by Paper Adventures. My other choices came out of our clearance bins. We had a couple papers with white washed or distressed wood on them and one covered with old yardsticks. I thought the yardsticks (Folded Wood Tape Measures by K & Company) would be a fun addition. I wanted use the 40’s on the rulers somewhere in my album and the color & textures of the rulers fit in with a Western theme.

Once I had a good selection of paper, I started thinking about embellishments. I looked through my Grungeboard alphabet and took out the sheet of “T”s. I was sad that my set didn’t include numbers. I decided that I would cut a big 40 for the front cover on the Cricut diecut machine. As I was looking all through the store, I came across a large set of letters and numbers in a cupboard that Twila had used for one of her projects. I was excited to find a large 4 & 0 in a font that fit nicely with my theme. But if you can’t find something appropriate for your cover, do consider cutting your letters or numbers on the Cricut. In the store, we have the large Cricut that cuts shapes up to 12” . I chose some rubons with birthday, celebration and friend themes by KaiserCraft and Creative Café. For the back page, both inside and outside, I picked two square frames by Wild Asparagus.

To add a special flair to my album, I chose a transparency by Artistic Expressions called Celebrate. My last addition to my collection was paint. I wanted to use brown paint for the edges of some of my papers and as a background on my inside pages. As usual, I couldn’t find the exact color I wanted, so I chose a brown that was the closest I could find. Then I grabbed a black, a red and a metallic gold. I find that mixing metallic colors with any of my paints gives them an extra depth. You don’t need much, in fact, my gold paint was almost empty, I had to use a toothpick to reach in & get enough out for mixing.

I grabbed some last minute embellishments that I thought fit into my theme, unsure exactly where I would use them: Creative Café’s red felt pocket with a scalloped edge, Creative Café buttons in light blue, red & brown, thin twine in red, blue and ivory, Creative Café brown felt flower trim, 3 bronze hinged rings and a few pieces of coordinating ribbon.

For my adhesives, I chose hermafix squares, spray adhesive and Diamond Glaze. I wasn’t sure at first which adhesive to use, so I wanted to have a choice once I got started on my project.

When I got home, I laid out all my supplies on my table. I wanted to look at everything together and see if anything stuck out too much. I like to see everything together, so I can tell if it combines together in a cohesive way with my theme. I was happy with everything, but I did wonder if the Creative Café rubons would match my color scheme & theme. In the end, I only ended up using one from that set.

I had an idea in my head of how I wanted the inside pages to look, so I got to work.

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #3

2008-12-06T00:56:00.000-08:00

I chose to cut my papers into a bunch of 2 ½” squares. I chose 2 ½” so that I could put four squares on each page and still have room for a small border around the inside and outside of the squares. After cutting the squares, I laid them out in groups of four, moving them around until I liked the layout of each group. What I decided, was that I would use one red, one blue and two neutrals on each page. I arranged the squares so that red and blue were at a diagonal to each other, with the neutrals in the other spaces.

I thought a lot about where I wanted these pages with this four square layout to appear in my album. I decided that the four square layouts should have the same layout on their back side, so that I didn’t have to worry about what would show on the back, since most of my papers were single-sided. This way, I could lay a square over another square of exactly the same size on the back page and not worry white would be showing through the acrylic.

I did a lot of thinking about the backs of my pages and what would be seen when I looked into each page of my album. I had never worked with acrylic before and was pleasantly surprised to see how nice it turned out. Before starting, I worked on my layout on my table and by drew sketches of my plans. In the end, I didn’t end up with an album that was exactly like my sketches. I changed things as I went along and thought of something different that would work better or when I realized the pieces in my sketch wouldn’t all fit on one page.

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #4

2008-12-06T00:50:00.000-08:00

Pages 1 & 2 and 5 & 6

After much thought, I chose to place my four square layout on two complete pages (two acrylic sheets, both back & front) of my album. Behind the cover is the first set of four squares, I placed this layout on both sides of this first acrylic page (So the squares are on Pages 1 and 2 of the album.) My first step, after peeling off the protective page covering, (Be careful! I forgot to peel the covering off the back side of this page and had to remove my squares, peel it off and reattach the squares!), was to mix my paint to create the color I was looking for. I wanted a nice chocolate brown. I mixed brown, a few drops of black and about three times as much metallic gold as black and I was happy with the resulting color. I used a foam brush to apply the paint to about a 5 ½”x5 ½” area on my page. I applied the paint in one direction (vertically), so the grain would all be in the same direction. Next, I looked at my four square layout and rounded the outside corner of each square with my corner rounder. After rounding the corners, I laid each square down in the wet paint, pushing all over the square with my fingers to be sure there were no bubbles hidden underneath. I placed each square into the paint in this manner, leaving about a ¼” margin between the squares.

I liked the look of my four squares and moved on to cover the tab. I used the red bandana print to cover the tab. I liked the look of the paper and it’s also double-sided, which is a nice bonus, I didn’t have to cover the back side of the tab. I traced around the tab and cut out a piece with my scissors. I used Tim Holtz’s Distress Ink in Tea Dye to ink the edges of the paper. I adhered this piece to the tab with Diamond Glaze (using a foam brush to apply the glaze). The Diamond Glaze makes a nice, shiny surface and also acts as an adhesive.

After allowing my paint to dry, I turned the page over. The paint looked nice and was pretty transparent. I could see the backs of my squares on the other side. I used them as a guide to place my next set of squares on this page. I rounded the corners of these squares and inked them with the brown ink pad. I inked these squares because their edges would be visible and not hidden in the paint like the ones on the front side.

I used this same technique on what would become Pages 5 & 6 of my album. I didn’t want all of my pages to have the same layout. I only wanted one side of each double-page spread to have the four square layout. So when you open the album, Page 1, on the right is the four square layout. Turn the page and Page 2, on the left side is the four square layout. Turn Page 3 and then Page 5, on the right has the four square layout. Turn Page 5 and Page 6, on the left has the four square layout.

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #5

2008-12-05T19:57:00.000-08:00

Pages 3 & 4

I was looking for a layout that would complement my four square layout when I came up with this layout. I choose two 2 ½ x 3 ½” rectangles mounted so that they overlap a 1 ½ x 5 ½” rectangle. I used my corner rounder on one corner of each rectangle, to coordinate with the four square layout. I inked the edges of the rectangles with brown ink and used extra brown paint from the four square layout to do the edges of the long rectangle. For the tab, I chose the red bandana paper, laying it down over the tag and tracing around the tag and edge of the album. Next, I used my scissors to trim along my line and my cutter to create a 1” band adjoining the tag. I inked this paper with brown ink and adhered it to the acrylic with diamond glaze. The diamond glaze creates a shiny coating on the paper when viewed from the back side of this page. The red bandana paper is double sided, with a stripe pattern on the back, so the tab and adjoining strip are striped on page 4. I used the same two 2 ½ x 3 ½” rectangles and 1 ½ x 5 ½” rectangle design on page 4, using the hermafix squares to adhere all the rectangles to both pages 3 and 4.

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #6

2008-12-05T15:54:00.000-08:00

Pages 7 & 8

This page is the page just in front of the pocket page. I designed its elements to fit around the T that I stitched onto the pocket. I wanted to be able to see the T, so I used the Creative Café brown felt flower trim on the top and bottom to add some texture. I used an extra flower on the tab so the tab looks balanced when the album is closed. I cut two rectangles out of my double-sided papers and placed them on either side of the T. I used spray adhesive to adhere both the trim and the paper on this page.

The following photo is the back side of this page. No embellishments or paper were attached to this side of the page. This is an example of how nice the back side of the acrylic pages can look when some thought into their design.

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #7

2008-12-05T15:49:00.001-08:00

Page 9

When I first saw these little pockets, I fell in love with them and set about trying to think of a creative way to use them. I knew since this pocket was red, I could find some way to use it in my acrylic album. I also knew that I wanted to somehow include my friend’s cute birthday invitations in her album. The invitation was huge (5 ¾” x 11”), so I wasn’t sure how to include it in a 6”x6” album. Once I started thinking about the pocket, an idea came to me. I would scan the invitation and print it small, so I could put it in the pocket as a tag. After printing the small invitation “tag,” I used a piece of red twine tied onto the corner, so that people would be able to remove the tag from the pocket. Now that I had decided how to use the invitation, I needed some embellishment on the pocket. Since I wasn’t able to find a T that was the perfect size for this album (mine were either too large or too small), I decided to stitch one onto the front of the pocket. I used thin ivory twine to stitch a large T onto the pocket. I have done a lot of counted cross stitch in my life, so I wasn’t intimidated by stitching. I just thought about how big I wanted the letter and got started. I used mostly a back stitch, but some of the stitch is some other stitch entirely, I’m not sure which one, but it turned out fine. I wasn’t looking for perfection, just to have a handmade look. You could use a white pencil to trace your design onto the felt, but I was in a time crunch by the time I got to this step, so I just jumped in & got started. After the T was finished, I thought it looked a little plain, so I added the flowers using blue twine.

I used my Wild Asparagus frames on the front & back of the pages with the pocket. I laid the first frame down and placed the pocket over it so the frame only showed a bit around the edges. I attached both pieces with spray adhesive. I applied some rubon flourishes from my KaiserCraft set around the pocket. On the back side, I plan to mount the second frame directly over the first one. I didn’t attach the second one before giving the album as a gift, so that my friend could place a photo on the page and place the second frame over it. I used a KaiserCraft birthday rubon on the second frame.

Page 10

This photo shows what the back of the album will look like (before a photo is placed in the frame). The pocket edges only show a bit over the top of the frame.

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #8

2008-12-05T15:39:00.000-08:00

For the front cover, I chose the largest numbers I could find. I wish I knew the vendor for these numbers. I found them in a box in a cupboard at the store. I used the same paint on the numbers and T, that I had mixed for the background of my four square layout. I painted one side of the chipboard and all the edges. I left them on wax paper to dry and then painted their back sides.

For the numbers, I chose my favorite papers from my project stash to cover them. I like to apply paper to chipboard using spray adhesive. First, I go outside (spray adhesive has a strong odor and the sticky overspray is almost impossible to remove from things like the table, floor or your clothes). Then I hold the chipboard at an angle, so I can see where I’m applying the adhesive, I spray the adhesive onto the chipboard from about 12 inches away so that it is applied in a fine mist all over the project. If you hold the spray adhesive too close to your project, it gets too thick and can run or ooze out the sides of your paper. After the chipboard is coated with a fine mist of adhesive, I take it back into the house and lay the paper down over the adhesive. I smooth the paper down on my chipboard to make sure there are no bubbles and let it dry (about 30 minutes).

After the paper was attached, I used a foam brush to edge the numbers again, making sure the paint covered the edges of my paper. Next, I took a long piece of ivory twine and wrapped it around the bottom of the 0, tying a knot in the twine on the front of the 0 once I thought I had enough. I wanted it to resemble rope tied around the number. I did the same thing with the red twine diagonally across from the ivory twine. This time, after wrapping the twine several times, I put the ends of the twine through two of my Creative Café buttons (first a medium sized light blue button and then a smaller brown button with a carved edge) and tied a knot on top of the buttons. For both the ivory & red twine, I left about an 1 ½” ends after tying the knots.

After everything was dry and I was satisfied with my twine wrapping, I mounted the numbers on the cover of my album using a foam brush to apply diamond glaze to the back sides of each number. I pressed the numbers onto the cover and left them to dry overnight. The next day, I applied a birthday theme rubon on the back of the cover directly on top of the number 0, to give the back of the cover a little attention.

Julie's Acrylic Album Class #9

2008-12-05T14:50:00.000-08:00

For my final embellishments, I replaced the silver hinged rings that came with the album with bronze rings. The bronze rings melded with my theme much more than the shiny silver ones. I’ll save those for a future project. After assembling the album pages on the rings, I cut a piece of thick twine. This thick twine is from my gardening supplies and works well to simulate rope in craft projects. I used the piece of thick twine to tie knots around each ring, so that a piece of twine ran between each ring. To this twine I tied a piece of coordinating ribbon and a piece of both red and blue thin twine. I did the same thing with the ribbon & twine between each ring.

I still had the brown painted T and thought it would be fun to use it in an unexpected way. I used a large needle (from my Making Memories tool kit) to poke a hole in the T and loop blue twine through the hole. I used the ends of the blue twine to tie a red button onto the front of the T. I then used the loop to hang the T from my top bronze ring.

When I set up the album and stepped back to admire it. I was very happy that after using so many different techniques learned from so many sources had come together to create what I felt was a cohesive decorative project.

My friend loved her gift and I still can’t wait to help her place her 40th birthday party photos in the album. I plan to help her decided which photos to include and which sizes to print them in. We’ll get together soon to do the last part of this project. I want to print the photos in sepia tone and in various sizes to complement the Western themes and colors I have so carefully created. I’ll take photos of the finished project and share them with you soon!

Acrylic Album Class Coming Soon...

2008-11-25T09:06:00.000-08:00

I'm excited to share my latest project with you! I've got photos of everything I worked on for the creation of my first acrylic album. I made this album as a 40th birthday present for my friend Teresa, who had a big barndance for her birthday party. In preparation, I looked all over the store for papers & embellishments that had a Western look. Some were from our farm section, but others were pulled from other places, including our clearance papers. At first it took me a while to get my head around this project. I was worried about how to put together the pages when you can see down into the album and through the back of each page. But once I started, the project got easier as I went along. I'm taking all my photos on my Thanksgiving trip to Medford and promise to return with a DIY acrylic album class so you won't be afraid to give this beautiful medium a try. Happy Thanksgiving!

Julie's 10 Minute Mini Album Class #4

2008-11-11T13:38:00.001-08:00

For a few final touches, use some embellishments from your stash at home. Or find some in the bulk embellishment section at our store. I used a little orange chipboard flower from the Creative Cafe collection, and put a copper brad through the hole. I adhered this to my page with glue dots. And finally for a special touch on the inside pages, I picked some paper maple leaves from my collection and used a glue dot to add one to the corner of each page.

My album was finished in 10 minutes, I couldn't believe it! Such a cute gift in so little time for so little money! Adding these last embellishments did take me an extra 5 minutes after I got home from cropping at the store, but I think they're totally worth it!

I encourage everyone to give this project a try! It's so nice to have that great feeling of accomplishment in such a short time! So many projects in scrapbooking take so long to complete, that it's nice to have a little ego boost to inspire your creativity! And my mom really loved her own album of her Little Pumpkins!

Julie's 10 Minute Mini Album Class #3

2008-11-11T13:34:00.000-08:00

Next, use your scissors to cut the ribbon into 12 4" lengths. Take each piece of ribbon and tie it around the hinged ring. There is no particular order for tying the ribbon, but I like to mix my textures and prints so that each ribbon is next to one totally different from itself.

Julie's 10 Minute Mini Album Class #2

2008-11-11T13:20:00.000-08:00

After punching each page, use your corner rounder
to round the corners on each page.

Open your hinged ring and place each page onto the ring, with the cover on top.

Julie's 10 Minute Mini Album Class #1

2008-11-11T12:44:00.000-08:00

(Please do not copy our photos or text and paste into another site or print them out. Instead, please pass on a link to our site to anyone who may find this online class useful. Thank you!)

This mini-album is a great gift idea and only took me 10 minutes to complete...after I chose my papers and photos. I used 8 wallet size photos for this project. I choose wallets as the size for my photos when I ordered them from the Costco Photo Center. Costco's wallets come 4 to a sheet and are 39 cents per sheet. So each photo is about 10 cents each and for the total cost of $3.12 (8 sheets of 4 photos each), you could make 4 of these mini albums to use for gifts. Next, I chose my papers. I looked at my photos for and thought about the theme I was trying to create and the common colors in each photo. Since these were all pumpkin patch photos, I looked for papers with a Fall theme. I chose double sided patterned papers, so that I could have a little more variety in my patterns and so that the back of each page would look as nice as the front. Another plus about double sided papers for this project, is that they are thicker than most one sided papers. My Fancy Pants papers were 89 cents each, and I chose 3 papers for a total of $2.67. You could choose just one paper for the whole album if you like and then the cost would be less. With my 3 sheets of paper, I would be able to make 3 more albums, using my extra photos. Next I chose a hinged ring to match my papers and hold the album together (75 cents). After completing the project, I did end up adding a few embellishments from my collection for a little extra flair. Feel free to add as many embellishments as you like to your album. To save money, look through your stash at home first and see if you have anything that might match your theme and then bring them to the store when you're ready to choose your papers. You might have everything you need or just need to add a few things from the bulk embellishments section. I also chose to add ribbon to the ring on my finished project. The ribbons I chose averaged about $1.00 per yard and for one album, I needed about 4 feet of ribbon, so the cost was approximately $1.33 per album. As far as adhesives, anything you use to adhere your photos in your albums will work fine on this project. I used a brown Zig marker to write my title on the cover and glue dots to adhere my embellishments. As far as tools, I used my scissors to trim my photos and my large Fiskars trimmer to cut the paper. I used a regular sized hole punch for the holes and a corner rounder to round each page.

My total for 4 mini albums to use as gifts is $14.11 for supplies (not including extra embellishments & adhesives). So the cost for each mini album works out to be about $3.53. I think these are wonderful gifts for moms, dads, grandmas & grandpas, aunt & uncles. Use this mini album format to showcase your kids, their hobbies, your pets, your travels and so many more wonderful events!

Let's get started!

First use your scissors to trim your 8 wallet size photos (2 1/2" x 3 1/2"). You can either trim them with a white border or trim off all the white. Next take your double sided patterned paper and cut 9 4" x 3" rectangles. The extra piece will be your album cover.

Experiment a little with your photos and each paper, lay each photo on the front & back of each paper, checking to see which mix you like. I laid mine all out on the table to see which order I wanted both the photos and the patterns to be in. But don't worry too much about this part! When you choose the papers to coordinate with your photos, you took care of the hard part! What takes the most time in scrapbooking is deciding what to do. So if you're looking for a quick project, try to not spend so much time worrying and spend more time getting the project done! You'll love it in the end and it will look great!

Use your choice of adhesive and mount the photos on the papers. Think of a cute title for your album and use a marker to write it on the cover. Next, take each rectangle and punch a hole in the corner. I punched one of the photo pages first and then held each of the next papers behind it, one at a time, using the first hole as my guide, to be sure my holes were all in the same place.

10 Minute Mini Album Class

2008-10-27T23:25:00.001-07:00

This project was a last-minute idea of mine when I was working the crop last Friday night. I was making a pumpkin patch page with the kids' pictures. Since I was using wallet size photos printed from Costco, I had 3 extra of each picture. I was wondering what to do with the extras while I made my layout and an idea came to me. I could make a mini album for my mom that she could carry in her purse and share pictures of her grandkids with friends. I cut each wallet size photo with a white border and measured them. They were 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches and I had 8 of them. I looked around the store and found 3 sheets of double-sided, printed paper from Fancy Pants True Papers collection. I grabbed one copper hinged ring and a hole punch.

I'll finish the rest of this project post soon! :) -Julie

Bo Bunny Chipboard Album Class #6 - Embellish It!

2008-09-24T10:47:00.000-07:00

OK, now the fun part! Take all the papers & ribbons you have left, flowers, brads, and any of your favorite embellishments. It's nice to see everything at once, so you can decide what fits & matches with each page. I like to take ribbons & tie them around any edges I can. For this project, I tied ribbon around the A, R & Y. (NOTE: I liked the way the double sided paper showed through the holes in the P & R, so I left it this time & didn't cut it away when I trimmed around all the other letters. Just check out everything before you trim to see if you might want to leave anything.) For this project, I used the Cricut at Whimzee's & its Alphalicious alphabet to cut out a name & some other shapes. I'm giving this one to my friend's daughter, Josie, for her 1st birthday, so I wanted to put her name & age on it. I stuck with the scraps of the papers I had already used for most of my inside pages, and I added a little coordinating cardstock. I also used a set of Fiskars clear stamps (a birthday set) and brown ink to add a little something to many of the inside pages. There were so many colors in these paper collections, that I thought brown would go with everything. And I wanted the ink to be subtle, something you might miss on first glance but would stand out after you took a few looks at the album.

So let's check out the pages:

Since this is a gift & I don't have photos, I took scraps from the project and cut shapes that I thought would work well as backgrounds for photos. I used a square & a circle on this page. You could put a photo in the circle or a little piece of memorabilia. I snipped a couple pieces of the party hat paper to use as decoration. Next, I layered two flowers together with a leaf and held them together with a small silver brad. Glue dots are the best way to adhere plastic items and ribbon to paper, so I used them throughout the book. I added a piece of ribbon, to the edge of the square photo, being careful to include the words "happy birthday" in my piece. I then closed the page and saw a little area of the A showing through and decided to put a little "make a wish" stamp in that space. For one last touch, I took a piece of dotted ribbon and wrapped it around the page, through the hole in the A, leaving the knot and long ends to show on the next page.

When I put the ribbon around the A, I used a large needle tool to poke two holes into the ribbon. I put one flower & brad in each hole and tied the knot in the ribbon. All that was left was to add a square photo background. I like to use the paper from the facing page to make a background. Since I already made sure the papers coordinated, it was easy to pick the facing paper for this page. And on this page it was extra easy...the paper on the back of the A is the back side of the paper on the front of the R. As far as embellishing the front of the R, I went a bit conservative here. Since the back of the A is pretty busy, I placed one background (see, it's the facing paper again) and a small piece of green ribbon on this page. I like being able to see some of the words on paper that has so many words. I did use another stamp with brown ink here. Near the top of the brown box, I stamped a group of balloons that peeks out when the book is closed.

On the next pages, I love these dot patterns and wanted them to stand more on their own. I used the back sides of the papers as photo backgrounds. On the left, I placed two pieces of ribbon under the background with the words "birthday" and "party" sticking out. For the right, I used one large photo background and one small square with a stamp and a plastic flower & silver brad in the corner. I like the look of all the dots in circular patterns covering these pages.

For these pages, I used two different photo backgrounds. On the left I chose the party hat paper and cut it about an inch larger than I originally thought I needed. I used the extra room to place two thin yellow paper pieces, stamped with birthday sayings, placing them on the left and bottom. I used two flowers and brads, one on each piece of paper in the extra space at the ends. For the right side, I used pink cardstock, cut a little long, with a stamp along the edge. For a little extra zing, I put three pieces of ribbon, folded in half under the side of the background with the edges sticking out. On this page, I used the pink dot paper to cut a large "1" & small "st" on the Cricut and adhered them so that they could be seen when the book was closed.

For the back of the album, I used a turquoise dotted piece as a background, cutting it extra long along the top. To give the impression of a gift, I tied a ribbon on the side of the paper with the knot at the top. Then I used a few last flowers, layered two on a brad, and arranged them in a triangle on the left side.

I was excited to finish the project and can't wait to have my friend unwrap it for her daughter and use it to showcase the photos from her first birthday. I love the Bo Bunny My Word Chipboard Albums. And I think that whoever receives them as a gift will cherish them as keepsakes for years to come!

Bo Bunny Chipboard Album Class #5 - Ribbon, Ribbon & More Ribbon

2008-09-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

On of the things I love about the Bo Bunny My Word albums is that I can go crazy with one of my favorite embellishments....RIBBON! I like to squeeze in some ribbon where ever I can, in my projects. For this album, I chose lot's of white background ribbons with dots & words like...party, celebrate, birthday. I also picked some lime green shimmery ribbon, a red sheer ribbon with a swirl pattern and a medium blue rick-rack. I don't have too much rhyme or reason to how I pick the ribbons. I usually grab all the ribbons I can find in the store that are coordinate with my paper and make a pile of them on the counter on top of the paper. I try to pick a variety....pattern, solid, printed, shaped (like the rick-rack). I think a bit of everything mixed together looks great in a project like this.

I buy about a yard & a half of each ribbon for a project like this. Next, I cut the ribbon in 4 inch pieces. Since there are 3 rings, I cut three 4 inch pieces. I use the rest of the ribbon to tie on the letters and to decorate the inside of the album. Take your 4 inch pieces and tie them, one at a time, onto the rings. Being a type A person, I divide my ribbon so that each ring has a piece of each ribbon. You can do it however you like, really, one can have too much organization in her life! I just tie the ribbon around the ring once, so that there aren't too many big knots taking up room on the ring and I like the ribbon ends to be a bit longer.

For my PARTY book, I used 7 different ribbons. The number is up to you. If I found wider coordinating ribbons, I would probably only use 5 or so. I think it really depends on how many ribbons you find that you like. As far as ribbon goes, I'm not a "less is more" kind of girl!

Bo Bunny Chipboard Album Class #4 - Painting the Edges

2008-09-18T22:58:00.000-07:00

After you cut the excess paper from each letter, it's time to paint. Choose a paint color that runs through each page or one that coordinates with all of your papers. I use acrylic paint. I mix colors together to achieve the look I like. If you can't find a paint in a coordinating color, you might want to give mixing your own a try. If you aren't in to mixing, maybe black or brown would look nice with your paper, eliminating the extra step of mixing.

Instead of paint, you could use a small ink pad to ink the chipboard and paper edges. Personally, I like acrylic paint the best because an applicator sponge allows me to get into tight corners that an ink pad doesn't.

Once you have the paint you like, dip a paint applicator just barely into the paint. Touch the applicator to the edges of your letters, dragging it slowly along all the edges. I like a thin border of paint on the outside of my letters, so I just touch the applicator lightly along the edges. If you would like your border thicker, use a little more pressure when you drag your brush along the edges. After painting the edges, use the applicator along the inside edges of the letters with "holes" in them. (In this album, the P, A & R have inside edges)

Lay your letters on wax paper and wait for them to dry. Do be sure to look at both sides of the letter, so that you can be sure you have covered the chipboard edge up to the paper on both sides.

After the letters all dry, place the rings inside the holes and arrange your album. You can embellish the pages while the album is hooked together with the rings or take it apart for easier access.

Bo Bunny Chipboard Album Class #3 - Trimming the Paper

2008-09-18T13:58:00.000-07:00

When you are finished with the front of each letter, the first letter should be ready for trimming. Take the letter & paper and lay them letter side up on a craft cutting mat. Use your craft knife to trim the excess paper from around the letter. Place the knife against the letter, press hard enough to cut through the paper and slowly drag your knife along the edge of the letter, as closely as you can to the letter. Don't worry if you accidentally cut off a little of the chipboard or if the paper tears slightly. We'll cover all the edges with paint later and no one will be able to tell.

Be sure to use your knife to cut out the paper covering the 3 holes in the end of each letter at this point.

Next, repeat the instructions in Class #2 for the back of each letter. Don't forget to remove the paper from the back sides of the 3 holes.

Bo Bunny Chipboard Album Class #2 - Choosing & Adhering the Paper

2008-09-18T13:28:00.000-07:00

First I take a look at both sides of each paper. I use double-sided papers for the Bo Bunny albums. I make sure I choose papers that are truly 12 x 12 inches in size. (Just a few of our papers are slightly smaller than 12 x12.) I trim any white strips from the edges, on these papers there were white strips showing the manufacturer & collection names, upc, etc. Next, I cut each piece in half, forming a 6 x 12 inch piece. I sort them and flip them from front to back, just seeing which patterns I like together.

When you make one of these albums, you have to choose a paper to cover both sides of each letter. So be sure to look over your choices for, say the back of the P and the front of the A, to be sure they look nice together. It's possible to mix & match small prints with large, dark backgrounds with light. As long as you choose papers that coordinate, it makes no difference if the papers come from the same collection. For this project, I choose two collections that I like together. If you aren't confident you can mix the collections, lay everything you like together on a table in the store and see what you think. Don't be afraid to ask one of the Whimzee's Girls for help, or ask someone who's scrapping that day, everyone has an opinion and one person might see something another misses. If you want a fail safe, quick way to choose your papers, pick them from one large collection. Some of our collections are very deep in their choices. Some of my favorites are Basic Grey, Cosmo Cricket, Tinkering Ink, Little Yellow Bicycle & Reminisce.

After I choose my papers, I use spray adhesive to adhere the paper to the chipboard. I like to use spray adhesive outside or in the garage. Not only does it have a strong odor, but the overspray creates a sticky surface on everything it touches.....your table, floor, carpet, etc. I spray the front of each letter and carefully lay the paper I have chosen for its front over the adhesive, lining the edges of the paper with the edges of the letter first. Spray adhesive is a bit forgiving, so you do have a little time to lift the paper in case it isn't perfectly lined up on your first try. After you are happy with the position of the paper, lay everything on your table and press the chipboard firmly onto the paper. Set the letter aside and repeat the process with each letter. By the time you're finished with this process, the first letter should be dry & ready for trimming.

Bo Bunny Chipboard Album Class #1 - Gathering the Supplies

2008-09-17T19:29:00.000-07:00

(Please do not copy our photos or text and paste into another site or print them out. Instead, please pass on a link to our site to anyone who may find this online class useful. Thank you!)

I want to share how easy it is to create a mini-album with a Bo Bunny My Word chipboard album. I chose the PARTY album. For your own project, feel free to choose any of their albums (or any other chipboard album that suites your fancy). The techniques are interchangeable between chipboard albums.

See all of Bo Bunny's My Word Albums and check out their completed projects at www.bobunny.com/mywords/

I started with my PARTY album, Junkitz Salsa Celebration collection papers, Creative Imaginations Art Warehouse Candles & Cakes collection papers, craft paint, Creative Cafe rings, Blossoms & Leaves by Creative Impressions, any coordinating ribbons I could find..... and most importantly Spray Adhesive.

As far as tools, I like to cut with my large Fiskars paper cutter. I used my lime green Doodlebug Designs craft knife and cutting pad, it's so nice when things can be so useful and also so stylish! I used Glue Dots and Hermafix squares to attach the embellishments on my pages. I decorated my pages with Fiskars Acrylic Stamps, brown ink and numerous shapes cut out in the store on the Cricut using the Alphalicious font cartridge. I love the Cricut! We have it available for you to use in the store for a $2 fee. It's so easy to use and we have lot's of fonts for you to choose from.

So after collecting all of my supplies, I was ready to start the project.

Busy Week!

2008-09-16T17:48:00.000-07:00

I just finished the newsletter & haven't had a chance to post my Bo Bunny chipboard album project yet! I'll be sure to start it tomorrow. I think I'll break it into a few posts, so I'll have time write some instructions to go along with each photo. The albums are really easy to make and I think that with some photos & an online class, you'll want to make a few for your friends & family...don't forget one for you too! We've got a some in stock in the store....PARTY (the one I made), BEACH (Twila made one, check it out in the store), GRADE, TEAM (great for a coach's gift), BABY (I should get to making one of these for Jake) and BELIEVE (I'm not sure if we have this one in stock right now, but they should be coming soon if not. I did start one of these last Christmas & I promise to finish it with Jake's 1st Christmas this year.) The most important thing to have when you're ready to start one of these great albums is Spray Adhesive. It makes the project a quick one....not waiting for glue to dry or getting sticky using a ton of glue stick. So be sure to pick up a can with your other supplies. I'll have more info. on the supplies when I put in the class instructions. Thanks for checking out our blog! Come back tomorrow to see my latest project!

Preview...Little Yellow Bicycle 'Frightful' Collection

2008-09-02T23:46:00.000-07:00

Here's the layout I promised in the last edition of the newsletter. Better late than never is my theory on this one! Getting Laney ready for school and helping Jake through teething have been taking priority the last couple weeks. But I did finally get a chance to make a layout with Little Yellow Bicycle's Frightful Collection. We received one sheet of each paper and a package of each embellishment to play with. Check out the whole collection on the Little Yellow Bicycle website http://www.mylyb.com/frightful. We'll have the collection in the store just in time for Halloween. I loved using the double sided papers (one of my favorite things in my new "use all the pattern you can" phase). I used the Cricut to cut the circles. I even sketched this layout before starting, a first for me. But, as is always the case with me, I used my creative license...even on my own sketch. I just can't leave well-enough alone, no matter what layout I try to "scraplift," I can't help but alter it to fit my needs and my own personal style. Give it a try the next time you "borrow" a layout from another scrapper. We all have our own personal style, no matter how creative you feel you are. There are things you like to do on your pages that are different from anyone else's. Try to incorporate some of those things in your next layout, whether or not you take it from the latest issue of Sketches. That layout will become your own. Just a little change like this will help the creativity in you shine through and soon, all your layouts will be unique to you.

Make your own Explosion Box

2008-09-02T23:28:00.000-07:00

I mentioned the explosion box in the latest Whimzee's Newsletter. The box would be an awesome gift for someone special. It does take a significant amount of time to complete. If you're interested in a birthday box, we have a few kits from Bo Bunny in the store. I made a sample last Winter. If you'd like to take a look, it's on the counter in the store. We were thinking of doing a class, but since it took longer than 2 hours, we decided against the class. The birthday box would be a lot of fun for a 30th, 40th or 50th party...or a Sweet 16.

This explosion box is so cute and made from the 3 Bugs in a Rug Summer collection. It looks like the designer used only one of the three layers mentioned in most explosion box instructions. I love this idea, as it cuts out a ton of time from the process and still results in a totally fun gift idea. You could make one of these for Grandma for her birthday or Christmas. Or you could make one as a hostess Thank You, for that friend who loaned you her beach house for weekend this summer. You pick! :)

Here's a link to a blog with step-by-step photos and detailed instructions.

http://glitteradventure.blogspot.com/2006/11/exploding-box-class.html

As always, we'd love to see photos of your latest creations! And we welcome comments & suggestions about the store, the newsletter or the blog!

Star bright...Star light...

2008-08-29T00:16:00.000-07:00

As I was surfing the net the other day, I came across this cool little album. Shaped like a star, it really caught my eye. I was amazed at how it all folded together into a square, tied together with ribbon. From the top, it's shape is a six-pointed star. The patterned papers coordinate nicely from all sides. The album can be folded, tied and put on a shelf or mailed to a loved one. It can also be displayed on a table top. So many ideas shot into my head when I saw this album. It would make a wonderful keepsake of a special birthday party. It could be made with Halloween papers and used to show six years of costumes. It could showcase six Christmases or six famkily members at Christmas. The possibilities with this one are endless. I'm planning to look through the paper we're ordering for the store so I can pick something yummy and make a sample for everyone to look at. How would you use the star album? Would you be interested in coming to a class and making one? Maybe with some of our newest Christmas papers?

Welcome to Our Newest 'Baby!'

2008-08-19T15:18:00.000-07:00

Hi there, welcome to the Whimzee's Girls Online blog! We wanted to start a blog to keep up on what all of you are up to. We want the blog to be a place to share ideas. We'd love to see your newest layouts & papercrafting ideas. Be sure to share links to any cool sites or blogs you find here too! Just to go along with today's newsletter, I want to share a cool idea using Creative Imaginations' Candles & Cakes collection papers. These papers are from Art Warehouse, designed by Danelle Johnson. I checked out her blog last night and found a ton of cool ideas. She used this birthday paper to create an acrylic birthday album. Each page has a photo of her child with her birthday cake. There is a page for each year. Danelle has so many great ideas, be sure to surf around her blog a bit before you go! Let us know what you think about the blog, newsletter and our store. We're working on a website too, and we'll fill you in on all the developments as they happen! We can't wait to hear from you!

http://danelle-johnson.com/danelleblog/