Hello!  It’s Casharina here and I’m bringing you a new hybrid project and sticking true to myself, it’s another EASY peasy project that anyone can do, while still being beautiful and useful when finished!   Today I’m making a message board.  These can be done in a variety of ways and designs and can be used for all sorts of things:  I’m thinking a menu board, a dry erase calendar, simple personalized board to keep track of a schedule, or notes from a teacher!  I created this design to give to my husband’s host teacher as he just finished his student teaching (CONGRATS hubby!).  She was a wonderful mentor and very helpful to him.  I am also planning on making one of these for my little girl’s teacher as an end of the year gift!!  So let’s get started shall we…(that’s what my kiddo would say; in a deep but sophisticated voice!  Lol)

Items needed:

• Picture frame (WITH glass-to make it dry erase!)
• Photo paper & printer (or use a photo lab/professional printer)

 To make this you will need ANY picture frame…that’s right, this is your board you can make it as big or small as you’d like.  I have made up to an 11×14 design and sent it off to be printed, but you could make one to suit your needs and just have it printed at any photo lab.

 You will want to have your frame ready for a print…that means if you’re like me and you LOVE to find good deals at the Goodwill or junk store, you’ll want to clean, refinish, and paint your frame before creating the goodie to go in it!

 For this design, since I had put off creating a gift until the night before, yah I know BAD!!  But in my defense we went camping, and then had Easter stuff, and I just kinda forgot about it, please don’t tell me I’m the only one to do that, right!?  Anyway for this design I created mine as an 8×10 and placed it into a matted 11×14 frame.

 Here comes the EASY PEASY part!!  Just open a document to the size you need printed.  I opened an 8×10 document at 300 dpi. Create your design.  

For my teacher gift I used the Hopscotch kit.  The kit worked perfectly for what I wanted to accomplish.  SAVE your work and THEN highlight all layers.  I like to place all layers into a folder and then duplicate that folder and THEN merge the layers. I’m ALWAYS afraid that I’m going to merge the layers and then accidently press SAVE when I go to close it.  So this way even if I do, I will have only one group merged but still have the others open and adjustable for later use.

 After merging the all layers together, crop the outside of the layout, so that the image is exactly an 8×10.  I could have just printed from here, but you guys know me and I don’t like to cut anything that I don’t have to.  So, I decided to open a new page as an 8.5×11. I then duplicated the merged copy to the 8x5x11 layout.  I was then able to place the merged design at the top left hand corner, leaving me with only two sides that needed cut.

 Print your design.  Now, if you’re printing at home I recommend using your choice of photo paper.  I use Office Depot brand Standard Photo paper and have used their professional paper as well and highly recommend them.  They work GREAT for hybrid projects especially when using Mod Podge.  

 If your design is larger than your printer can print, you would need to follow each of the above steps and then save the design as a high quality JPEG and send/take it to your photo lab to be printed.

Once complete, place it in your preferred frame and voila, you’ve got a BEAUTIFUL personalized message board!!  I really don’t think it can get much easier than that!!

Make sure you place it under glass so that you can simply use dry erase markers on it! 

 In the past I’ve also made a calendar print for my BFF.  I used a BLANK calendar page from the Shoppes Two Page Calendar Vol. 4 July’s Bottom and had it printed…she can now use it all year long as a dry eraser calendar!

I hope you have all enjoyed this post and get some use out of it, be sure to share it in the gallery if you make your own DIY message board!! – We’d love to see it!!  Check back Monday for Layout of the Week!

CasharinaHybrid Projects, Uncategorized 6 Comments

Happy Friday, everyone!  This is Kim, here to share a hybrid project I adapted from an idea I recently stumbled upon.  For a while now, I’ve wanted to make new name signs for my two kids who share a bedroom.  I even bought shelves I wanted to paint and chipboard letters I wanted somehow to sit on the shelves.  But as things often go, the shelves and letters sat in my closet for quite a while!  But when I saw the idea of using CDs as the backing to letters, I suddenly had an idea of how I was going to put it all together.  I’ll tell you more below, but first, here’s what my finished (YEAH!) project looks like.

It only took a few items to put together my letters.  Here are the supplies I used:

• CDs (What a great way to reuse old CDs with data you no longer need or music you long ago loaded onto your computer!)
• Chipboard letters that I painted with antique white craft paint (I already had these and wanted to use them, but there are lots of great alphas in the Shoppe that you could print and use instead.)
• Scrapbook paper printed out to layer behind the letters (For my patterned paper, I used the Summer Cottage and Gabby kits.)
• Embellishments printed out on cardstock to add to the letters (I kept mine fairly simple, but I love the way the Barefoot birdies added a little extra touch.)
• Glue (I used scrapbook glue for the papers and hot glue for the letters.)

How to put your letters together:

• Decide what papers and embellishments you are going to use and print them.  This was the hardest part for me – so many options!!  But once I had my plan in mind, the rest was easy.
• Cut the layers of paper into circles.  I was fortunate to have some circle cutters from my paper scrapping days, but you could also find round objects (jars perhaps) to help you trace a circle to use as a pattern.  When I cut my circles, I intentionally left a little edge of the CD showing (I used the side of the CD that the data is recorded on because I didn’t want to see any labels).  I thought having a little of the CD showing added a little “bling”!
• Cut out your embellishments
• Glue everything in place – papers, letters, and embellishments
• Decide how you want to display the letters.  I knew I wanted to set mine up on the shelves I had, but you could also attach them to ribbon to string them together for hanging.

That’s it!  It’s a fairly simple project, but one that I’m glad I finally put together.  And it’s an idea you could use for any kind of word you want to spell out and display.  How about a saying for a media room?  Or a happy birthday sign?  What would you want to create?  Hope this project inspires some of you out there!

Thanks for stopping by today and hope you all have a lovely weekend.  We’ll be back on Monday as Beckie announces our Layout of the Week!

KimHybrid Projects, Uncategorized 4 Comments

Hi all, it’s me again, Casharina, bringing you yet another fairly simple Hybrid Post!  As you know I love simple hybrids, especially when there’s little to NO cutting involved!  So with Valentines JUST around the corner, yah I know…I can’t believe it either, anyway I’ve decided to share two simple projects with you that I plan on doing this year for my kiddos.  First off I’ll share a Valentine Card and then VERY simple treat bag toppers, made from 4×6 prints, easy peasy!

 I’ll start with the most time consuming, the card!  I have the hardest time putting together cards like this because I have sooo many ideas in my head about how it should look and what it should say, etc. that I get carried away and can’t choose just one.  So this year I decided I’d use the Shabby Shoppe’s Gingerbread Card Template Collection to get me started.  I chose to use a 5″ x 5″ template which I then altered to a 3″ x 3″ and added in papers from the Darling Paper Collection as well as some flowers and buttons from Sugarplum Dreams and Twirl Collection.  The word art is found in the Sweetie Pie kit!  I chose to have them printed as 4″ x 6″ prints from Wal-Mart so that I could take advantage of the cheaper cost, rather than using so much of my personal printers ink ~ that stuff gets pricey! ;0)

Tip: After mine were printed, the borders had been cut off on each side; so if you make a border be sure to leave room for the lab bleeds.  I will just go ahead and cut off the remaining white borders and you won’t be able to tell, but for future references it’d be nice to remember!

~*~ 3×3 Valentine Cards ~*~

•  Open the template, adjust the image size to 3 inches x 3 inches and then complete it to your liking with papers and embellishments! 
• Create a rectangle around the full template and choose Image, Crop. This will prevent the extra sides from being transferred to the final layout.
• I chose to sharpen mine a little prior to saving it as a JPEG!
• Save document as a JPEG.
• Now you’ll open new 4 inches x6 inches layout.
• Next, you’ll bring in your SAVED card (the jpeg file). Place one at the top corner of your document and then (CTRL+J) duplicate it to create a second copy to place on the other side of the layout.  
• For myself to know where the cutting line is, I chose a light color to use on the background layer.  This will provide the line for cutting since my layout has a white background.
• Save this as a JPEG and it’s ready for printing!

Tip: I know here at my Wal-Mart, they will even trim the photo for me if I ask before I leave, so keep that in mind when you pick them up!

After they’re printed I had Kaytlynn to sign the backs of them for her classmates and teacher.

 Are you still with me? Hope so…we’re moving on to the second project!

 ~*~ 4×6 Treat Bag Toppers ~*~

• Open new 4 inches x 6 inches document (standard photo size).
• Choose a digital paper that you would like to use.  For mine I mostly used papers from the Sweetie Pie collection, I love the bright colors of the kit and they’re perfect for Valentine’s projects!  As well as a few non-themed papers again from the Twirl Collection.  You’ll simply drag the selected paper over to your document. You may want to resize it to fit the 4×6 a little better.  If you do, be sure to use Shift and or Shift+Alt to keep it all in the right proportions.
• Once you have your paper (background) exactly how you want it you’ll want to add word art or text, or simply leave it as is.  If you choose to leave as is skip a few steps to see how to finish it for printing! ;o) For my toppers I chose to use the Yours Truly Expressions to add a little extra character.  This is a simple addition that can make your toppers really stand out and be personal.  You may also choose to simply use text to place a special note to the receivers of your gifts.  I also left room on each of my toppers for my daughter to sign her name…I thought that would make it a little more personal.  Tip: Be sure to add a horizontal guide to the middle of your document so that you’ll know where the photo will be bent and clipped to your bag so that your text/embellishments fit within either side (unless of course you want it to be that way!)  I chose to add a few with words and some without, taking advantage of the fun hearty papers from the kits.
• Once you’ve added your text you’re almost finished, YAY!  All you need to do now is save this image as a JPEG.  I like to save mine at a high resolution, above 10.  When saving things that I know will be sent to a lab, I like to place them in a folder together so that they’re a little easier to find when I’m uploading them.
• Once you’ve finished your designs you just need to have them printed.

•   I found some pink, clear, and blue party favor bags at Wal-Mart for less than a dollar for 20 so I picked those up for the Valentine’s Day Treats…I figured I could do some pinks for the girls and blues for the boys.  Then, I plan to stuff them with a few cookies and/or candy!
• Attach your printed 4×6 photos onto your filled treat bags using staples or a piece of tape on each end…and then we’re done!

I hope you’ve enjoyed these super simple projects and if you choose to do some too I’d love for you to share them in the gallery!

Have a wonderful weekend and we’ll see you back here on Monday for Layout of the Week!  Until then HAPPY SCRAPPING!!

CasharinaHybrid Projects, Uncategorized 4 Comments

Hi everyone, Rosy here today with a super simple hybrid project for you!

I’m going to start by saying that I’m not much of a hybrid person.  One of the reasons I love digital is because it eliminates the need for cutting, glueing, and taping all of those little pieces together, but when I saw this post, the idea inspired me to use my digi-scrapping supplies!

Ever since Isaac started using legos for his building/tower making needs, we’ve had this extra set of blocks that haven’t been getting much use, so I gave them a new purpose as simple puzzles.

Supplies you will need:

• blocks
• printed stickers/pictures
• scissors
• packing tape

How to make them:

• Measure your blocks and open a blank document in Photoshop, or other program, in that size.
• Drag your stickers or embellishments onto your document to size it correctly. ( I used the cute animal stickers from the Bounce kit)
• I added a light color to my background so that the edge of the sticker would show and make cutting it out later much easier, but this step is totally optional.
• After they were sized correctly I dragged them onto a standard paper size document to make printing them faster.

• Print them, cut them out and then in half, and tape them on your blocks!  (I put my tape on the sticker and then cut it in half before applying to the blocks.)
  … and then you’re ready to hand them over to your puzzle loving little ones to enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by!  We’ll be back on Monday with a LOTW post!  Until then have a wonderful weekend!

RosyHybrid Projects, Uncategorized 5 Comments

Hi everyone ~ Kylie here! :o)  Happy Friday to you all!  Hope you’ve been enjoying all our happy holiday hybrid projects this week!  Lots of ideas to make your holiday season a little more magical…and just incase you missed a post or two, here is a recap:

Jenelle inspired us with some amazing “subway art” and the cutest little gift canisters.

Kim shared the awesome advent calendar she created for her children - we LOVE it!  But, her kids are LOVING it even more!!

Casharina showed us how to create our very own candy bar wrappers, complete with adorable gift boxes.

And today, my little contribution is some decorative picture boxes. (The first of TWO blog posts we are sharing with you today!!)

I made three unique & fun picture boxes to show you…because, firstly, I can never stick with just the one style, and secondly, I simply wanted to keep playing and playing with some of the beautiful Shabby Shoppe holiday-themed kits.  (Lucky I stopped when I did otherwise this post would never have hit the blog in time!! LOL!)  The 3-D look of a picture box is what I love the most.  I guess it’s like bringing a scrapbook page to life by adding some all-important depth with a little shadowing here and there…this is the ‘hybrid’ version.

The options are endless.  You can be as creative as you want – you can keep the box simple, or you can dress it up…and then some!  You can just make one special box to hang on your wall or sit atop your mantelpiece to keep all your xmas stockings company.  You could make a set…or even make one for every room of the house!! ;o)  They make lovely homemade gifts too…something that you can personalise for each recipient!  And don’t forget, these picture boxes are not just for the holidays…they are for anytime, any celebration, any theme!  Imagine a cute little set for a baby’s nursery…precious!  Why not have a favourite scrapbook page printed and add a few small co-ordinating mementos to the box.  Again, the possibilities are endless…so have FUN! :o)

To start things off you’ll need to purchase a framed picture box (also called a shadow box).  You can find them in most big department stores, photographic shops that sell picture/photo frames, craft stores, various online stores – just search, or you can even have them specially made (if you want a particular size and frame type).  I bought my 23x23cm/9x9in (photo space size) from Ikea for $14.95 each…from their Ribba collection. (I haven’t provided a direct link as Ikea in different locations, not to mention countries, may stock different products…you may need to do a google search and a little research if you are looking for the exact same ones) 

Next, have a browse through your Shabby Shoppe products and work out a design for your festive creation.

You will also need:

• paper to print on -> I used semi-gloss photo paper (A4 in size) for almost everything
• adhesive -> I used some mod podge, clear craft glue, double-sided tape, 3-D dots and glue dots – depending on what I was adhering.
• scissors, craft knife
• any other decorations and/or bling you want! -> I used ribbons, sequins, christmas ornaments, acrylic paint, sparkle mod podge and some wooden florishes from HERE.

I am still in love with the SUGARPLUM CUPS & MUGS hybrid set that was released around this time last year.  They are available from the hybrid shoppe and are perfect for gifting treats, gift cards and anything else you can think of!  I really wanted to make use of them again this year…but in a different way.  So, I chose one of the five adorable printable cups and opened the file in photoshop.  I added some “Be Merry” text, printed it out on my trusty home printer and followed the simple directions to make it.  To fit the picture box I did have to cut the already-made paper cup down the middle of the ‘side’ section, trim about a centimetre off each and then fit it back together with some double-sided tape.  A quick and easy adjustment.

For the rest of the picture box, I then printed out the pink notepaper, a sweet little peppermint element and “2,0,1,1″ numbers from the Sugarplum Dreams kit on a sheet of photo paper.  Trimmed each component with scissors.  You could ink the edges if you want, I didn’t worry about it this time and left the edges clean.  Then it’s just a matter of positioning the cup on the background paper and adding the ribbon and peppermint – all with either double-sided tape or glue dots.

For the ‘year’ I added 3-D dots to the back of each number and then adhered the bottom of each to a strip of paper with double-sided tape.  This helps the numbers stand up as one piece.

To finish up, I popped the ‘year’ into the box and secured it with a little tape.  I then added the photo matte (provided with the frame), then the teacup piece…and closed the picture box up.  First box complete! :o)

For my Santa Sleigh picture box I had lots of fun with the adorable BELIEVE kit graphics!

After measuring the ‘inside photo matte’ dimensions, I opened a photoshop work area and typed a little of the Jingle Bells chorus.  I also added one of the Believe digi-stamps; to which I added a green colour-overlay and played with some digi-watercolouring (on a new layer) to fill in the holly leaves and berries.  I added my newly edited digi-stamp to the top and bottom of the page.  To another A4 size work area I added my favourite believe graphics and re-sized them using the full-frame dimensions as an approximate guide.  I then printed both pages and trimmed everything as required.  To the presents I added sequins to the front and 3D dots to the back to help them stand on their own.  To the tree I added a little length of craft wood in an upside-down ‘T’ so that it would stand unassisted at the bottom of the picture box.

For the wooden sleigh flourish – I painted it red and silver, a quick coat of mod podge to seal and then some bling (sequins) with a tiny squirt of craft glue.  Just make sure that you allow enough drying time between coats of paint, the mod podge and glueing the sequins.

I positioned all the pieces in the box, added the matte, then the Jingle Bells print-out (securing it with a little scotch tape so it didn’t move), and finally closed up the box ever-so carefully.  Oh and a little tied bow to the front of the box.  Second box complete!! :o)

This was my attempt at a more elegant and traditional picture box.  And what better kit to use than ‘TWAS THE NIGHT!!

I used the same dimensions as the above ‘jingle bells’ work area and added the cream paper from the ‘Twas the Night kit as my background.  Added text ~ a couple of lines from my favourite Christmas carol.  I then filled another A4 size work area with wide strips of the ornate blue, gold and cream papers.  Printing both is the next step.  For the ‘O Holy Night’ background I used photo paper, but for the other “paper strips” I used standard office/photocopy paper (the thinner paper makes it easier to trim and decoupage the wooden angel.)

To decorate the wooden angel flourish I cut a rectangular shape about the same size as the area I needed to fill.  I then attached it to the wood with mod podge, let it dry and trimmed the excess and inbetween the ‘flourishes’ with a craft knife and even a sewing needle for the small spaces.  I added a little gold paint to the halo and sealed the whole piece with a coat of mod podge.  I then took out my Sparkle mod podge and added several coats (allowing for drying time between coats also).  And if that wasn’t enough glitter I also sprinkled some onto the wings…oh and three gold sequins to the sleeve.

To attach the angel to the background paper I used 3-D dots (two on top of eachother placed in various spots around the back of the angel) to add as much depth as I could.

The final decorative touch was adding some hanging baubles using gold wired-ribbon and some fine gold thread.  Put the matte in place, the angel piece (secured with a little scotch tape) and then closed the box up.  Third and final box complete! :o)

Ok, so I didn’t quite stop there!!! LOL!  You may have noticed that I arranged the picture boxes with some of my holiday decorations – ornaments, little xmas tree, and even some framed photographs…to build up a festive scene.  With the ‘Twas the night’ box I decided to make some handmade ornaments.  I used the leftover paper I printed for the angel and cut it into lots of small paper strips – about 2x1cm (about 1×0.5in).  And then with mod podge I glued all the little pieces (overlapping them) onto small styrofoam/polystyrene balls (available from most craft stores).  To seal and add sparkle I added coat after coat of sparkle mod podge!  Lets just say it took a while, if you add up all the drying time, but soooo worth the effort.  I pinned a little half-cap craft ‘bead’ and a piece of ribbon to the top of each ball.  And to the two-tone ball a border of pinned gold sequins.  I used special beading pins – they are much shorter than standard pins.  Hey presto!!!..my very own ornaments using ‘Twas the Night papers!!

——————————–

 THANKS for joining me today…hope you enjoyed reading about my little “Happy Holiday” picture boxes as much as I enjoyed sharing them with you!  But don’t go anywhere yet…Rosy has a fantabulous scrapbooking inspiration post that is soooo perfect for the holidays!  So read on my dear friends…

KylieHybrid Projects, Uncategorized 8 Comments