Made by Wendy Bellino

Sunday, May 24, 2020

Rekindling an old Friendship

My family has become much closer during our time being quarantined together. We've done yard work, planted a vegetable garden, finished up our list of "honey do" and repair projects and rediscovered hobbies that were neglected. Even though we only ventured out a few times for necessities, we accomplished so much and I feel like I've had a "reset". I really needed that. I've cleaned out most of the cobwebs in my life and I'm ready for a fresh productive start.

This quote has inspired me during the weeks of quarantine,

“Take a deep breath, ignore the deafening noise, and think deeply about what you want to put back into your life. This is our chance to define a new version of normal, a rare and truly sacred (yes, sacred) opportunity to get rid of the bullshit and to only bring back what works for us, what makes our lives richer, what makes our kids happier, what makes us truly proud.”
Julio Vincent Gambuto

Writing blog posts is like a diary for me. It allows me time for reflection and perspective. I can look back on my past work and ideas and learn from them and it allows my creative side to grow. So, after reading some of my past blog posts, I got reacquainted with an old friend during "the quarantine". A lot had changed and I had forgotten a lot of things. But, after a few hours together, we were back on track again and we made some fun projects together. I really missed my little sewing buddy. I see lots of sewing projects with my Singer Stylist 7258 in my future!

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🤔 Reminiscent of the Malcolm in the Middle episode where Malcolm and Lois got mono and Bedazzled everything. I gave my sewing room a little animal magnetism during “the quarantine”! 🤪 #sewersgonnasew #sewistforlife #grrrrbabyverygrrrr

A post shared by Wendy Chapman Bellino (@wendy_c_b) on May 22, 2020 at 6:46am PDT

For today's post, I was invited to participate in the Coffee Lover's Spring/Summer 2020 blog hop by Monica at Taylormadecards4u. She is one of 73 Super Sponsors for the hop, so if you are feeling creative link up for a chance to win some great prizes! I was immediately inspired to make something using the round label designs in her latest coffee-themed digital kit, Another Cup of Coffee.

I used the rest of my fabric scraps from my sewing room makeover to whip up a set of coffee themed "mug rugs".

I backed a piece of white fabric with some freezer paper for stability and printed the designs using my inkjet printer. I followed the directions from this post from Sarah and used her recommendation for using white vinegar to set the designs. They faded a good bit, but that adds to the vintage charm. I haven't researched other methods of preserving the printed designs for waterproofing, so suggestions are welcome. I will definitely do this again!

Off to make a second cuppa coffee and visit with my crew. Have a fabulous day and thanks so much for stopping by!

Gotta Bur in my Saddle

Welp, dang it. That coronavirus has got us all topsy turvy. While I'm hibernating, I might as well use up my stash to make something purty. If you're stuck at home too, come check out the new Cupcake Inspirations challenge - we want you to add some butterflies to your projects!

I'm combining a cowboy boot A7 card-shaped Silhouette cut file with the new Club Scrap Western kit for a mighty fine pair of boots! (All supplies will be listed at the end of this post.)

Stickin' with the theme, I decided to add a little feminine touch to my boots!

This was one of the easiest cards that I have put together in a long time! I downloaded the file, opened it in the Silhouette Studio program, arranged the pieces on the workspace according to the color of card stock that I would use, and fed the cutting mat into the machine.

Easy as pie!

Now for the fun part! After I arranged all the pieces, I added some flair! I started off inking the edges of the cardstock for a distressed look.

Club Scrap's Earth ink did a nice job of adding a little pop but just couldn't leave this piece bare, especially with the beautiful Western stamp designs. I started out thinking I would apply a tone-on-tone effect with Versamark ink, but I just had to kick it up a notch!

I had my neglected stash of Perfect Pearls still out on my craft table, so I gave it a lick and promise and dusted over the stamped areas with the color Blue Smoke.

Yeehaw! What a good lookin' card!

On a serious note, I hope you and your families are well and that you all stay that way. Take care, spend time at home with your families, clean the house, play in the yard, get crafty if you're bored, and WASH YOUR HANDS!

Happy trails to you!

SUPPLIES LIST:

Below you can find a list with all the products used today. Links to multiple online shops are available. Just click the static image below to be redirected to the LinkDeli product list. When the bookmarklet opens, click your favorite store link below each item. Compensated affiliate links may be used – that means if you make a purchase using my links, I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for your support of my work on this blog!

https://linkdeli.com/widget.js?1559654439292

Carpe Vinum!

I don't know wine, but I do know what tastes good. My family owns an Italian restaurant and I have been introduced to the "good stuff". I've sampled numerous varieties over the last fifteen years and I've narrowed down my favorite grapes to pinot noir and pinot grigio. My oldest son is the wine aficionado in our family. If he recommends it or pairs it with food you can guarantee your taste buds will be happy. However, I drink wine so that I can do something crafty with the corks!

Today’s project is part of the monthly YouTube hop for the TMC4u Inspiration team and we have teamed up with the Crafter's Castle Design Team. TMC4u is the new sponsor for the monthly challenges on the Crafters Castle Challenge blog and each team will create projects showcasing a vintage digital kit from TMC4u. The featured kit will be the prize for the winner of the challenge and this month’s kit is the Passport to Italy!

I found a cut file by Jamie Lane Designs for this 3D wine bottle gift box in the Silhouette Design Store and thought it paired well with the Italian theme of the kit. (A full list of available supplies is listed at the end of this post.) If you download as an SVG file, you can cut the images with other die cutting machines like the Cricut and Brother ScanNcut. The designer has also included a link to her blog where she posted detailed photos and step-by-step written instructions on how to put the pieces together. It’s super easy to assemble!

Jamie Lane Designs Wine Bottle Gift Box

I "print and cut" the the panels of the box using digital backgrounds and elements from the Passport to Italy kit that I resized using Photoshop Elements.

I love how easy it is to be creative using digital designs!

Click HERE to join the challenge on the Crafter's Castle Challenge blog for a chance to win the Passport to Italy kit and HERE for the full list of video hop links!

Thanks for stopping by and carpe vinum!

SUPPLIES LIST:

https://linkdeli.com/widget.js?1559654439292

Rock of ❤

My best friend and my valentine... he plays both positions on this team. We got married 30 years ago, when we were both babies!

November 24, 1990

We've grown up together. We started out "playing house" and built our family.

My "valentine" has a raunchy sense of humor, doesn't mind offending people, likes to be the center of attention, loves us with every fiber of his being, is and has the most loyal friends in the world, you either love him or hate him, but he's mine. I am as in love with this big kid as the day I married him. I don't ever want him to change. He's my Rock of ❤!

I'm on a Perfect Pearls kick lately. I've been shopping in my stash of scrap crap...and my craft room is full of it! 😆 Seriously, I love this stuff. It makes me feel so artsy!

Click HERE for the SVG cut file by Studio Illustrado to make one of these fun musical themed cards for yourself!

Visit me on YouTube and be sure to check out this video of my "rockin'" card making process!

Join us on the Cupcake Inspirations blog with your interpretation of our LOVE theme. I'll look for you in the gallery!

SUPPLIES LIST:

Rangerink.com has a new loyalty program where you can earn points when you complete activities like making a purchase, creating an account and referring a friend. You can redeem the points for rewards from Ranger Ink Retail Shop. There are lots of new products coming soon, so sign up to earn 30% off your first retail order! Click here to start shopping!

Hearts and Flowers

Happy Valentine's Day! There'll be lots of hearts, flowers and chocolates passed around today. My family owns an Italian restaurant and Valentine's night is always crazy busy, especially when the holiday falls on the weekend. My husband and my sons will go in early to prep and I won't see them until the wee hours of tomorrow morning. The last time Chris and I celebrated Valentine's Day as a couple was 16 years ago. It was the first year we were open and he called me around 10PM and asked me to get dressed to come up to the restaurant. He had a table decorated just for us. We sat down to a nice quiet dinner after the rush and he served an entree named for me...the Steak Wendy! It's an 8 oz. filet topped with his own crabmeat au gratin sauce and garnished with three large shrimp sauteed in garlic butter. It was beautiful! It's still one of the most popular items on our menu and I love the love story behind it.

Today's post is part of the Hearts and Flowers Video Hop! In each video we will be sharing projects with hearts and flowers to get you inspired for spring crafting.

Some of the videos in the hop will offer a giveaway, so be sure to check the description boxes for instructions on how to enter for your chance to win. I’m offering a set of pre-cut Vintage Valentine images from Taylormadecards4u.com, cut using my Silhouette Cameo, as the prize for my channel.

Leave me a comment in the comments section below the video on YouTube telling me what kinds of videos you’d like to see in the future…card making, mixed media techniques, projects or art journaling - tell me your favorite! The hop lasts through Thursday, February 20th. giving you plenty of time to watch and comment on each video. Prize winners will be announced by February 25th on each individual channel and a list of all the winners will posted on the Taylormadecards4u.com/blog.

I’m always on the lookout for a “new to me” card design and I recently discovered the Impossible card. (Check out the new card kit at Club Scrap highlighting an impossible card design!)

It turns out that it’s super simple to create and you can easily adapt the base for any size card you want. I picked out some of the images from the Vintage Valentine set and I’ve sized them to fit on 5x7 inch card bases. Watch the video for details on how to create this design and how easy it is to adapt the size! ( The decorative panel pieces for the cards I created are one 2¼ x 3 ¼, one ¾ x 3 ¼, two 4¼ x 1½ and one 4 x 1¼).

The first card highlights a stencil technique using Perfect Medium and Perfect Pearls mica powder. It's the perfect combination to add a little shine to your project! (All supplies will be listed at the end of this post).

I used another stencil technique to decorate the panels on this cute card with Perfect Medium pens.

Isn't this sentiment perfect for your favorite "galentine"?

I am in love with this card! That secretary image is just adorable and I found a stencil and stamp image in my stash to complement the theme.

I used a limited edition panagram stencil from Club Scrap, applied the new Deco Foil Transfer gel duo and embossed with gold Deco Foil for a fun foiled design!

This card would be perfect for your favorite teacher...mine happens to be my mom!