Glass Cleaner

We try to avoid chemicals in our household as much as possible and by doing so, we have found some excellent alternatives.  One of my favourites is our Glass cleaner.  It is really simple to make and works really well.

In a spray bottle, mix together:

• 1 cup denatured or isopropyl alcohol
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbsp white vinegar and/or 1 tbsp ammonia

That's it.  Give a little shake to mix it up then you are good to go.

Lovely as a Tree

I needed a masculine card for birthdays that are coming up, so I pulled out one of my favourite sets "Lovely as a Tree" from Stampin' Up.  I wanted to keep the colour scheme fairly neutral so I decided on the browns, tan and beige.

I ran the beige card stock through my Cuttlebug using Darice's wood grain embossing folder.  I stamped the bottom with a wood grain stamp and coloured the tree using my Copics.  I airbrushed the sky using Copic B21.

I separated the top from the bottom using one of my favourite things - recycled ribbon!  I always save ribbon, no matter what colour, that comes into my home, even if it is used on a box or packaging.

In Full Bloom

This card is larger than my usual 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" card as I had bought the precut and scored cards from Michaels to use as the card itself.  The base of the card is Ivory card stock, as is the stamped background.   Again I pulled out an old set "In Full Bloom" from Stampin' Up. I coloured the flower using my Copics Y15, Y35, Y38, E37, E79, YG93, YG95, and YG97. 

 I started out by embossing only the bottom couple of inches of the base cardstock then distressing it with Distress Ink colours "Scattered Straw" and "Tea Dye".  I tried to highlight the embossing with the ink.  I am keeping the card generic right now so that I can add a word running up the side such as "Celebrate" or "Love" or even "Thanks".

"Haute Couture"

I love to pull out the old sets I have stored in my stash.  Some sets are timeless, as I feel this one "Haute Couture" from Stampin Up is. I also used an embossing folder in my Cuttlebug and blinged it up with rhinestones.  It is a simple card that works well for birthdays of any teenage girl.

Porcelain Bread Dough Recipe

The one thing about cyber space is that if your computer crashes or your hard drive fails, you can be guaranteed that not all will be lost if you have posted something on your blog, your Facebook page, Google Docs, YouTube or any of the other social networking devices.  So in order for this recipe to never be lost, I am posting it here. 

I used this recipe many years ago, and it worked really well for what I needed.  I don't know where the recipe came from other than I got it from a friend, so I apologize now if it is someones.  Please let me know if you know where the original recipe originated from and I will source it.   I still have some of the small roses that I used this recipe with and they looking as good as the day they were made.

BREAD DOUGH

1 tbsp Aleene's Thin-Bodied Glue (or LePages)  This is to give you the look of porcelain.
1 slice of white bread
1 tbsp corn starch
1/2 tsp lemon juice
'Dab' of cold cream (Ponds works best)
Paint -- several drops of Americana or equivalent paint

Make sure your hands are clean.  To mix dough, put glue and bread (without the crust), cornstarch, lemon juice and cold cream in a dish.  Stir with popsicle stick until all ingredients stick together.  Reach into the bowl and put dough mixture into your hands (it is very gooey at this point) continue to mix and knead together for about five minutes, until it all comes off your hands and becomes a smooth ball of dough.  Place in a Zip Lock bag.  Wash your hands of excess.  If your hands are dry use some lotion or cold cream on them so the dough won't stick.  Divide the dough and add the colours now.  Keep the dough that you are not working with covered as it dries quickly.  

To add the paint, make a little hole in the dough and add the paint into it.  Continue to mix and knead until the paint has blended into the dough. Cover again immediately.

Introducing Me

I have created this blog for me.  It is intended to be a place where I can put my thoughts, projects and ideas down, all together.  It will not be about one specific craft or hobby, it will be whatever takes my fancy at the time and about anything that catches my whimsy.  If you happen to come across my blog, I hope you will find some inspiration, a tip, or an idea that will spark something for you.