The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge #10; Reuse & Upcycle... Junk Journals!

  Hello, everyone! The sun finally came out and warmed us up here in Indiana, and it's been go, go, go ever since. I'm once again typing on the fly, here. I just returned from a family gathering that I wish we hadn't had to have; a Celebration of Life for one of the Nieces on my side. Lyndia was only 39 and that's far too young. She knew The LORD and I know that's Who holds her now. It's so hard to see people question GOD's goodness in times like this, and yet; one day we will have all the answers to satisfy. The sadness of death was tempered by my being able to hold the newest GrandNiece (Zoey) tonight.

  Our older set of Kids had a rough month, and after much thought, decided to go ahead and adopt another Golden Retriever. Poor BEAR was beside himself over the loss of his older sister, Macie. He stopped eating and was crying quite a bit. He's lived his entire life as the baby with Macie at his side. To help him along better, they did some searching and came home with Callie. She's nearly whiter than BEAR, and fuzzy, warm, and loves to snuggle. BEAR seems to 'tollerate' her, yet he's getting back to his old self much faster now. By any stretch; you can never 'replace' any member of the family, and Callie is not another Macie- she's a big ball of fluffy CALLIE!

   I was finally able to get back to a bit of normal myself- having not felt well this past month and fighting the fatigue. Two new meds took me off-guard. That brings the Rx number to 25 now?? I think..  But, still not even a record for me- which was 28 one year. I try not to think about how much that costs- especially the chemo meds weekly. It really sticks in my craw to think how much TIM HOLTZ STUFF I could get with all that money!!! Grrrr!!! (LOL) In any case, I dragged my butt back out to the woods and found some delectable BIG shrooms (morel mushrooms). Helped the 2 older Grandkids to look and Peanut found his very first one- quite a prize at that! Memaw has her special spots over 35 years here, and knew where to go, but let's not belittle that 6 &1/2 inch delicious, huge hunk of mold! :) While we're outside trying to get the house caught up earlier this year, Baby Pecan has been having lots of fun in Canada with his 4 older Cousins. From the photos we get; you can clearly see he's having a grand time living in New York and popping up to Canada! Mr. BananaMan is what I'm calling him now, as you can see in the pic. I took Princess to her first Ladies Tea- she loved the frills of it all. Makes me look forward to having TWO GrandDaughters to do that with! Just a couple nights later, Peanut and Princess had their Preschool Spring Program- Princess's first and only Peanut's 2nd, thanks to Covid19. I hope things stay better now so that Pecan won't get cheated out of things like so many kids across the country have this past 2 years. In any case...this Granny is WHOOPED. I am going to sleep for the next 14 hours !!!

     But first; let's get down to business finally! "Reuse & Upcycle" is the theme for the latest Challenge over at The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog. Lisa's taking the lead on this one and she's challenging us basically to pick up some trash and use it to make something frilly, funkie, or vintage. Now....let's be honest; how many of us have a drawer in our craft area that contains what others call "trash" but we call "keep it just in case" stuff?? I'll admit that when I went through all my stuff in a total cleanout...gulp....I tossed out 5 BAGS of trash items; plastics, tubes, paper rolls, foam shapes, boxes, tissue paper, card fronts... you name it. So I KNOW you gotta have something you can use! C'mon; you know you do, so get it out and make something out of it. And don't forget to take a photo of it and share it with us at The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog !

(Links will take you to the item listed, or to a similar item at TFJB)

I'm using the older Eileen Hull Passport Die, but you can find her newer dies

HERE

My other featured items are Sizzix Chapter 2 Tim Holtz 3-D Texture Fades Embossing Folder - Cracked Leather and

Tim Holtz Idea-ology Worn Wallpaper Scraps - Halloween 

Tim Holtz Idea-ology Ephemera Snippets, Number Strips

Tim Holtz Kraft Stock - Classic

Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Aged Mahogany

Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Ground Espresso

Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Vintage Photo

Ranger Inkssentials Glossy Accents

I started with that pad I found in one of my drawers of stash paper (lucky me!),

and simply cut, cut, cut, and cut some more.

The Funkie Junkie Boutique not only ships quickly, is lovingly packed, but always

includes little freebies that often are a sample die cut of new dies just released!

As you can see; not only did I use the packing paper (under all the goodies) for my project,

but who doesn't get inspiration just from browsing the site?!?!

Shop with ME at The Funkie Junkie Boutique!

The paper is perfect for many craft uses.

It has that 'crinkley" Paper Lunch Sack look that is very suitable for Junk Journals.

I used one of the cuts from the Eileen Hull Passport Die to measure out the sheets.

Just fussy cutting them apart and then running them with the die to make the same cuts.

I actually ran out...for a minute. :)

I keep a few rolls or folds (depending on how much of a hurry I am on opening new goodies)

in my "trash treasure" drawer. I call that the Craft Room equivalent of the kitchen "everything drawer".

I was going to use my Retired TH Apothocary Alterations Die

(there is a newer one still in circulation), but opted for making the flowers into a bouquet.

I gently WATERED DOWN the stock that goes into the 3D Embossers.

You'll note this shows "Febreze" where it's really just the empty bottle refilled with PLAIN WATER.

Sorry, Tim, but this is a lot bigger and keeps me from having to refill so often.

I used TH Distress Oxide Ground Espresso on the raised parts of the 3D Cracked Leather Embosser

before running it twice through my Big Shot.

I scored both before and after on the outside pieces of the binding.

I do this whenever I am using more than one layer on any of my book-making.

You can see that the 3D Embossers give both the inside (bottom or wrong side) shown at left, 

 and the outside (the top or outer side) shown at right, great texture and look! 

You can really tell the difference in the texture and color with the 3d Cracked Leather Embosser.

I am really AWED by it and you'll probably hear me say that more than once.

It makes paper look like CLOTH.

I use regular Hand Quilting Thread (no brand is neccesary) to put the signatures (groups of paper)

together, and usually a thicker string like hemp string to hold each signature to the spine.

Cut first, then ink up, and heat dry before any gluing.

I found some perfect matching cording in my stash ribbons box.

Using the TH Glass Mat makes getting the Runner Tape smack in the middle= easy.

I usually do layers by the back-and-forth layering.

Think: sock and sock, then shoe and shoe

instead of sock and shoe, then sock and shoe.

Does that help?

It makes the entire thing more even.

I like to make my closures as ribbon/string hidden under the first layer of the cover. 

These books have 3 layers on each side, with only 2 layers on the bind.

3 cover layers- 3D Embossed cardstock, plain cardstock, TH Wallpaper

Middle Bind: 3D Embossed cardstock, plain cardstockl.

I used a "floating wood floor" brayer to roll my layers flat.

My ChiefHubby saved this for me after we got done putting in all new floors a few years back.

It's come in handy several times.

After rolling (squishing excess Glossy Accents out) and allowing to dry, I used my finger

to gently lay a coat of Glossy Accents all over the outside.

The result is the cutest Junk Journal of outer faux leather...

You can measure them up to the brown stitched faux leather, and red leather books below.

The Journal on the right is for my only younger sibling; my Sister Debbie.

It's been a long time since we've been together, and my thoughts & prayers are with her.

She's had a rough road to travel this past year, and I find myself missing our time together. 

Back when our boys were all young and in school during the day, we'd steal away and

have some good talks and fun shopping together before running back home to Wife/Mom duty.

I needed a Tag to stick inside for her birthday, which was May 9th,

and there was a piece of Snippets Ephemera- Number Strips with "May 12th, 1887" in the package!

We both adore old and vintage items, so this was perfect.

The violet and lavender is a nod to our Grandma Raymer for Debbie.

That Tim Holtz Wallpaper is the bee's knees when it comes to authentic look and feel!

A touch of Distress Oxide Ink in Aged Mahogany (and Ground Espresso in the photo below)

all around the edges is all that is needed here.

The Backsides

I had a really GREAT run with my "Sunday in the Park" theme at The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog on Tim Holtz Addicts Facebook Group with (as of this typing) a whopping 

588 reactions and 89 comments !! I am so GRATEFUL and so VERY HUMBLED. 

And if that wasn't enough...

Mr Tim Holtz, himself, commented- the ultimate praise from the Designer of the items used!!

THANK YOU ALL, SO VERY, VERY MUCH!!

It really DID lift my spirits at a time when I really needed it!

And now it's up to YOU: get some fun in and get crafty!

The rules are so simple- posted right under the inspiration from the Design Team makes

at

The Funkie Junkie Challenge Blog; Reuse & Upcycle

Sponsored by 

The Funkie Junkie Boutique

And that's all I wrote. ;)

Until next time...

Stay Safe &

HAPPY BLOGGING!!

Frilly and Funkie Challenge #9; Re-Purpose, Re-Use, Re-Cycle..."Oh, We're Goin' For A Ride!"

     April is always a busy month because it usually includes an important holiday (Easter) as well as another birthday (Younger Son up in Red Wing). And that meant we took the weekend to go up to Minnesota to be with the Younger Set of Kids for a first-time visit since Thanksgiving. The weather there is about three weeks behind Indiana's, but it was unexpectedly warm and sunny while we were there! There were still the piles of die-hard snow, but not as noticeable since they were melting pretty fast, and covered with black dirt and rocks from months of plowing up. But since that last 16 inches of snow was just a couple of weeks ago; impressive! Even more impressive was being able to get a start on the yard work with the kids; helping move the pile of wood and finish cleanup of the Willow tree that crashed down (nearly to the backdoor) during a tornado last fall. (Holli had been alone, taking cover in the bathtub with the pups,and Brett at work, but everyone turned out ok, and now the yard is, too!) I really had hoped to get this posted and out before we left, but here I am- typing up as usual, at the last minute. *giggles*…*hut-hum*...Right. Aaaaanywaaay.
               The The Frilly and Funkie Challenge Blog has been really putting some CHALLENGE into these Challenges; this time is all about the Three Rs. No, not Reading, Writing, and Arithmatic...it's about helping our Earth: Re-Purpose, Re-Use, and Re-Cycle. Very fitting theme considering yesterday (April 22nd) was Earth Day. I am a firm believer in The Bible and a Creator GOD, so taking care of HIS Creation is very important to me. We have recycled as much as possible here, and we have passed that habit on to our kids. Picking out the packaging that can still be used for crafts is now a thing the ChiefHubby joins in with me on- always asking if I can use it before he puts it to the "Burn Pile" or the "Recycle Pile". I save up all my paper/craft trash into small piles used to start campfires or burning cut/fallen branches and leaves. So anytime I am cutting, I am also thinking ahead on how to best use those leftovers...down to the very last bit. My mind went straight away on this theme to a Re-Purpose; with something that just came into our home the very week before and the ChiefHubby started saving them for me, asking what I could make from them! Perfect timing!

            Before we look at my project, I must show you where the idea came from...  

Those of you fellow Baby Boomers will recognize this song.

And, new Grandparents like me, are probably singing this song

to their Grandbabies during any trip.

Wittle Peanut Grandson, Cole, absolutely LOVES cars and trucks, so this is "our song"

as well as my inspiration for this entire project!

Now, let's get to the project itself!

The ChiefHubby thrives on chewing gum. His favorite brand went from little 5 stick paper packs,

to larger 18 stick paper packs, to these new plastic containers. The plastic itself is much more

recyclable than the dozens of little brand-name-printed little papers that get tossed.

I was thinking of the song above and wondered what I could transform this into.... 

I began with cuts....and cuts....and cuts... and MORE cuts!

Using the Sizzix Doll Die and some older Sizzix Mini Doll Dies, I cut enough

MatBoard bases and enough regular Vanilla Cardstock to form a 2-sided body,

as well as all the Granddogs and our own Hunni Pi, for each member of our family.

Using Glossy Accents, I glued each half together to form very sturdy chip people.

The FRONT SIDES of each 'skin' was left out- that would come up next...

I then got onto my computer and found all the most recent photos taken of each person.

We are OVERDUE for a new full-family shot, and we'll likely get to that 

during our get-together at Mackinac Island in a rental house this summer!

I cropped and edited each photo until I got what I wanted to print onto my 

Dolls Template created file I use just for printed faces or funny faces for dolls.

Here is a printed sheet from my Doll Template- it allows me to match up a ready-cut-doll

and use it to help line up the face for a perfect matching cut from the Doll Die.

Be careful not to burn yourself on the lightbulb of your Studio desk lamp!

Here's all the Kids and Grandkids...in their Birthday Suits!! Hahaha!!

And here is what I did with them...

This is US!! Each Doll has been seal-coated in Glossy Accents (which lasts thru baby

*mumming* & chewing- already tested on a prior project).

The ChiefHubby and I with the (Older Set of Kids) Grandbabies, our HunniPi and a toy truck... 

...and the BACKSIDE of us.

The Older Set of Kids..with their kids and pups... FRONT SIDES...

...and BACKSIDES,

The Younger Set of kids and their pups...

...and the BACKSIDES.

So, you ask, what was REPURPOSED?

THIS!!

I was first going to use my Cricut to copy both sets of kids' travel-together vehicles,

but that got too complicated to make each set look the same.

Then it hit on me to make them look like my Grandpa Raymer's 1931 Durant

( Hemming's Classic Car magazine, April 2006, Volume 2,  Issue 7)

CLICK HERE

which was his pride and joy! He'd purchased it the year I was born in 1965 and that car

was pretty much a 'staple' in our lives: parades, car shows, etc.

The Tim Holtz Alterations Die Old Jalopy comes as close to this fond memory

that our own Sons remember very well! My choice fit perfectly- on the boxes also!!

I used black and white vinyl since I don't have a perfect COLOR match for that car.

And the doll sets fit into each 'car' for a game of "We're Goin' For A Ride!"

each set of us will get their own car, and mine will have each Grandchild in with us.

(And there's always time to make more whenever we get any more!! Hehe!)

This entire project was a bit time-consuming as far as cutting and sealing went.

But it will be totally worth it- just to see the look on Wittle Peanut's face when

he looks at his own doll! As new Princess Pistachio gets biggeer; she will be able

to recognize herself as well. *huge smiles*

I can see Cole 'running' his 'car' along the window- the safety of the smooth plastic

will keep the Parents' REAL CAR pretty untouched- Bonus!

I'll end this post with some shouts of "THANKS!" to:

1) All the WONDERFULLY SWEET Comments left to me from the

 (Alice in Wonderland- "Follow The White Rabbit") last Challenge.

The Younger English Edu Daughter loved it, as I was able to take it to her

over the past weekend- another perfect timer thing! And,

2) As always- The Funkie Junkie Boutique as the Sponsor of these Challenges-

Linda always seems to have what everyone needs, and I try to peek in

at least once a week to make plans for my next order & keep up with 

the latest TIM HOLTZ products coming out!

The PRIZE DRAWING for each Challenge: SO FUN to see a WINNER!!

3) YOU; MY READERS!! For taking the time to pop in and take a LOOKIE!

   PLEASE...

BE SAFE &

HAPPY BLOGGING!!