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DIGITAL SCRAPBOOKINGHybrid Project: Product Picks (Part 2)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
It’s Kathy, back again to bring y’all part 2 of my Hybrid Product Pick series. Today I am going to be sharing my favorite products for embellishing all these gorgeous projects.
One of my absolute favorite things to use in hybrid projects is chipboard because it adds such depth and dimension. I have been smitten with all of Maya Road’s products, but their chipboard shapes are really to die for! Take a look at those cutie-patootie back to school shapes, wouldn’t they coordinate so well with the new Hopscotch School additions? Chipboard is so versitile, it can be painted, stamped, embossed, covered with patterned paper, glittered, you get the drift. Most always I use some distress ink to finish off a chipboard shape. Inking the edges of chipboard and paper makes them pop and adds a real shabby feel to your projects or pages. I use Tim Holtz Distress Ink line by Ranger, there are so many colors to choose from, but one of my favorites is Vintage Photo…love it! Another of my favorite products by Ranger is Stickles, a glitter glue that gives a shimmer to just about anything. Stickles also comes in a zillion lots of colors, but if I had to choose just one, it would be Diamond.
I go a little nuts for flowers too. I love the contrast of delicate flowers paired with the grunginess of distress inks. I love all of Prima’s flowers, and I love to make my own paper flowers too, it is so much fun and the styles and techniques are endless. However, one of my most favorite flowers to use are my own handmade crocheted flowers. Nichole Heady had a great tutorial on how to make them here. You might remember the Hybrid Recipe Box I made a while back featured a double layered crochet flower with a ribbon center.
Now, I am a GIRLY-GIRL, there is no doubt about that. I love pink, any color pink, in fact it has always been my favorite color. Orange is running a close second in the last few years, but pink still rules! I also love sparkly things that shimmer and shine, like GLITTER! Yes, I am a huge sucker for glitter…I like fine glitter, chunky glitter, glass glitter, any kind really. SO, you know that the candy colored glitters in the cute little bottles of Doodlebug’s Sugar Coating are a MUST HAVE on my list. I love to cover a chipboard letter in glitter and use it as a monogram to personalize things.
I love fabric. I LOVE fabric. Fabric does funny things to my heart…it goes pitter patter and feels all funny when I see beautiful fabric. It is very much like how I feel when I see a great new scrapbooking kit or paper pack. I love to sew and quilt and make lovely handmade things from fabric…and I love to use it in my hybrid projects too. Fabric flower embellishments are a perfect way to use up scraps and they add such punch to a project. The fabric featured below is Nicey Jane by Heather Bailey, one of my all time most favorite fabric designers…EVER!
Another staple in my hybrid stash is ribbon…lots of ribbon in lots and lots of colors. Grosgrain ribbon is sturdy, yet elegant and comes in just about any width imaginable. Ribbon looks great stitched onto a page, tied around a box handle or looped into a flower shape. A little ribbon can go a long way in adding texture and movement to your hybrid…sometimes even just a little goes a very long way. I have bought ribbon from lots of places. Recently, I discovered Trimweaver…I do not think I will ever buy grosgrain ribbon anywhere else. The colors are gorgeous, and the look and feel of their ribbon is far superior to any I’ve seen. Of course, there are lots of other wonderful ribbon retailers online (and locally, too) - be sure to Google some of them to find what best fits your needs!
There are so many ways to embellish your hybrid project, it is the most fun part, I think…as it allows your creativity to fly free. It can also be very frustrating if you are unsure of what you are doing or what products to use. I hope that my insight and suggestions have been helpful. Allow yourself to play with embellishments, trying different techniques and combinations of things, go outside of your comfort zone… try something new.
Aug 26, 2010 @ 17:18:21
just love your product picks posts (say that fast three times)! I SO know how you feel about fabric… just wish I had the ability to really DO something with it, lol! But there’s always Etsy (or my mom, if I can talk her into it). Thanks for all the wonderful tips, keep ‘em comin’!
Aug 26, 2010 @ 14:26:15
my kids and I craft together with the Sugar Coating glitter! in fact, for my daughter’s first day of school, she had to bring in a traced and cut-out hand that was decorated to remind her of her family. We drew each member of the family on it and then hearts and swirlies (she IS a girly girl), then we gilttered it like crazy. she LOVES it, and I had so much fun doing it with her! :)
last night my son wanted to make one, too – so his hand is colored in blue, brown and black glitter (not my personal favorite color combo, LOL) – but he just loves his work of art!
my $.02 is to encourage everyone to share their crafty things with their kids! they love it and for us it has become something we really love doing together! :)
Aug 26, 2010 @ 08:33:54
Just loved your post. I just found this site, a few weeks ago (live in the netherlands myself) and everyday I’m waiting for your new entries. I also love fabric next to digital kits ;-) but I`m just wondering how you all find the time to scrap so much, it’s so much fun! (and how you maintain structure in your digital scrap (maybe idea for a topic?)
Keep on posting! Thanks for the inspiration!
Kind regards,
Jessica
Aug 26, 2010 @ 09:23:32
Thank you so much Jessica, that is so sweet of you to say! I wonder the same thing about everyone too and I often get asked how I get it all done, seeing as I have 3 small kids, a quilting charity project that I run. And the answer is this, I don’t sleep a lot, I drink lots of coffee, I work during nap time, my laundry and house don’t get the attention that they deserve, and there are so many things that I want to do that I just can’t. I have learned that no one’s life is perfect, and if they are getting lots done in one area, they are neglecting something in another area(like my laundry and house) …so don’t feel bad. Have fun with it!
Aug 26, 2010 @ 08:21:00
oh…and i have the fabric and do not even sew, rofl! i just like to look at it :o) maybe one day i’ll bring out my hello kitty sewing machine….
Aug 26, 2010 @ 08:20:31
this is great, Kathy :o) and i had to laugh because as i was reviewing/publishing it this morning – i realized that i have every single thing you listed…and some of your fave colors are mine, too – lol! love it :o) thanks sooooo much!
Aug 26, 2010 @ 09:18:35
Thanks SP…great minds think alike…LOL! I know you have so much spare time to pull out that Hello Kitty sewing machine too! All of my fabric is folded neatly in 2 large cupboards, and I love walking by and looking at it and touching it. Although I do use it all the time too. It’s just really hard to cut into it sometimes.
Aug 26, 2010 @ 08:11:47
Love your post, Kathy!! Sooooo many ‘yummy’ hybrid goodies! Those sugar coating bottles are too cute!!! I think I want them all! :o)
Aug 26, 2010 @ 09:13:52
Aren’t they adorable!!! Love them.
Aug 26, 2010 @ 07:33:02
hey kathy, thanks for this great post – now I want to start digging in my material boxes immediatly!! :-) unfortunately I’m at work, so … :-(
and I’ve got a question: can you recommend any good online stores for all this lovely stuff, which (most important!!) do ship to europe?? that would be reeally helpful for me! thanks so much!!
Aug 26, 2010 @ 08:19:22
hi Lia :o) not Kathy (i wish, lol)…but thought i’d chime in and say that I purchase a lot of supplies at http://www.amazon.com (they ship internationally) and http://www.scrapbook.com (they ship internationally)! Beyond that…Google will probably be your best bet and you can just hope that some offer shipping to you :o) GOOD LUCK and have fun!
Aug 26, 2010 @ 09:16:55
Hey Lia, I don’t shop too much for traditional scrapbooking supplies online, as I buy through a supplier for my business, but I was going to suggest scrapbook.com as well…they seem to have everything that I look for when I google it. As for fabric, I shop at fabric.com, I’m pretty sure they ship overseas…and My Needle and Thread (an etsy store) also has great prices and cute stuff. Thanks for the love, so glad you liked the post!