Pennywise Arts

What’s Shakin Valentine ATC

2012-02-07T04:32:00.000-08:00

I made this atc using a background of X’s and O’s that I printed on my color printer. I used my Dymo labeler for the words and added purchased heart stickers. I attempted to open the back of the larger heart to add micro beads but it didn’t cooperate and I didn’t want to ruin the sticker. So consider this an inspirational idea of what you could do with premade shaker stickers, or even a home made heart shaker of your own!

Hugs, Suzanne

Small Fries Treat Box

2012-02-06T04:20:00.000-08:00

Have you seen these sweet little fry boxes that McDonald’s puts in their Happy Meals? I don’t have a kid, and rarely eat there so it was a total novelty to me when I saw it. So stinkin’ cute!

And then I got to thinking,……..

Wouldn’t it be cool if I could get my Cricut to cut a bunch of these out for me?? Wouldn’t they make fun party favors? And so it happened!

I added some bubble beads (with Sure Tac Glue) to border the top and bottom and mimic the bubbles in the paper design. Then I cut some hearts in varying sizes with my Cricut and stamped sentiments from an ancient Close To My Heart stamp set that I have.

I found that with a heavier cardstock they really needed to be put together with O’So Sticky Tape – nothing else held them together for longer than a minute.

I have a little craft party coming up in a few days, I think it’s time to go into production! Ü

Oh, and if you would like to have the svg file I’m happy to share it! (You would need to have one of the compatible computer programs to use it). It will cut 3 boxes from a sheet of 12 by 12 paper. Just “contact me”!

Hugs, Suzanne

Beaded By Candle Light

2012-02-05T04:26:00.000-08:00

At Christmastime I shared this holiday box of beaded candles:

I also meant to share who/what inspired that project and it just slipped by. Michelle McCarthy is the original designer of this fun box and beaded candles. Here is her design which uses leaf stamps from Stampin Up! and a colorful mixture of micro beads.

There are endless possibilities for this idea! With Valentine’s just around the corner I’m thinking a romantic gift or dinner by beaded candle light!

Hugs, Suzanne

Valentine Gift Bag

2012-02-03T04:10:00.000-08:00

On one of our play days together my friend Julie Imsland was inspired by a gift bag sample she saw on the web. Right before my eyes in a very, very short amount of time Julie transformed a white paper sack into this darling Valentine gift/treat bag!

Below are her directions. Note, the tab of the package opens at the back.

Supplies:

Small lunch sack with base of approx. 3” x 5”, I used a recycled white sack

Solid cardstock to match focal image

Focal image by SwingShift Designs: Valentine Hearts 3

Patterned Papers, two to match focal image

¼” O’so Sticky Tape

Gold Opaque Micro beads

Paper adhesive of choice (I used ATG tape)

Foam tape

Self adhesive Velcro circles

Directions:

Open sack completely, and then fold flat, creasing the base in the middle so the front and back of the sack base meet. See photo. (Instead of folding the sack base to one side as usual.)

Measure the width of the sack front (mine was about 5 ⅛”) and cut 2 pieces of solid cardstock that width x 3 ½”. Adhere these pieces to the front and back of the sack, aligning with the bottom edge.
Cut down the top of the paper sack with decorative scissors next to the edge of the cardstock.
Cut patterned paper for the top portion of the front, ¼” smaller than the width of the solid piece x 2 ¼” high. Cut second patterned paper for the bottom portion the same width as the top x 1” high. Adhere these two papers to the solid cardstock.
Place a piece of ¼” O’so sticky tape along the edge where the patterned papers meet. Peel off the red liner & press tape into a dish of gold micro beads. Press beads down firmly with fingers.
Cut one piece of patterned paper ¼” smaller than the back cardstock. Center and adhere to cardstock.
Tab is a 3” x 1” strip of solid cardstock with a piece of patterned paper ¼” smaller centered and adhered. Fold tab in half and adhere one half of tab at top of the package front.
Cut out focal image and adhere to package front tab with foam tape.
Apply an adhesive Velcro dot to the other end of tab to close package at the back.

Wouldn’t these make fun party favors?

Hugs, Suzanne

Valentine Tags

2012-01-31T04:11:00.000-08:00

Several years ago I bought this tag at a discount store. I loved the design, the texture, the colors, everything! I’ve used it a couple of times now as inspiration.

The first time was for a Christmas atc swap on the Pennywise Arts Yahoo Group. I made 50 of them!

Last week I used it to jump start some Valentine tags. My friend Julie Imsland came to craft with me so she made one too. I always like to see the subtle differences when different people do the same project.

This one is mine:

This one is Julie’s

We both used the “Roses Are Red 1” collage sheet from the Pennywise website for our rose background paper. There are lots of gorgeous images to choose from! I used red and gold opaque micro beads on my heart and Julie used ultra fine clear micro beads on her bird.

Now look closely at the hearts:

The one from the purchased tag is crimped one way.
	Julie showed me that if you fold your heart in half and put it through the crimper you get lines going in two directions
If you fold it in half and put it in the crimper another way the lines will go upward. I can’t remember which is which but one of us put the point in first and the other put the rounded end in first.

If this design inspires you too, please share a photo of what you make! If I get it before February 7th and if I get at least 12 entries to share, I will be awarding one of my heart charms to a lucky participant!

Use the “Contact Me” button on the blog to send an email with photo.

Hugs, Suzanne

Cherub Pin

2012-01-28T04:15:00.000-08:00

Microscope slides always made wonderful jewelry! This one uses two glass slides, a collage sheet from our Swing Shift Designs Valentine Collection, a piece of sheet music, some wire, seed beads, a self adhesive pin back, 1/4” O’So Sticky Tape and gold and red opaque micro beads.

It probably only took about 15 minutes to do from design, assemble and finish. A great project for office or teacher Valentine gifts!

For more details on “how to” as well as other photos see our tutorial on the website!

Hugs, Suzanne

Victorian Valentine Cone

2012-01-26T04:09:00.000-08:00

Sometimes when I need a little creative jump start I just Google things. This time I Googled “Valentine Craft Projects” and selected to see only images. That was how I found the inspiration for my Valentine cone. The photo I saw is copyright and I want to credit the original artist so click here to see it.

Hers is a much simpler version than what I made. I was cooped up without power for three days so as soon as the lights came on I went crazy in my craft room!

I started with a book of sheet music. It’s old. I’ve had it since I was about 12 or so which makes it really old. I decided it had more value to me in my craft stash than it did crammed in my piano bench. Ü I rolled the sheet into a cone shape and taped it together. For stability, I rolled a sheet of cardstock the same way and tucked it inside. Then the fun stuff started!

My friend Julie helped me set up my sewing machine so I could do a running stitch down the middle of some white crepe paper. It gathers itself a little bit and when I wanted more I just tugged on the back thread. The crepe paper is put around the top edge of my cone with O’So Sticky Tape. Then I punched holes in each side with my Crop-o-dile tool. Big holes, long reach, perfect.

I cut a heart from a piece of chipboard, inked it red and covered it with O’So Sticky Tape. I peeled off the liner and placed the “Valentine” banner across the heart and then dipped the heart into red opaque micro beads. It really helps to have friend over that does calligraphy, thanks Julie! Ü

For the ruffle behind the heart I layered some gold tulle over the paper before I ran it through the sewing machine. I gathered this one up tight to make a ruffled backdrop for the heart. This was put onto the cone with a really big glue dot.

The left side of the cone has some linked crystals dangling that I found at a really cool antique store, a lock and a key charm and an eye glass charm. The image inside the glass is from one of our Valentine collage sheets by Michele Aiello-Zendejas.

I strung some red, pink and gold seed beads together to dangle from the bottom of the heart. And I added a string of pearls and chain, something from my junk jewelry stash that I thought was a perfect finish. Ü I added a sheer gold ribbon hanger and tied extra ribbon to hang down both sides of the cone. Then I filled it with iridescent fluffy stuff. I think I will probably change it out for some ivory crinkle paper though, next time I go shopping.

I could tell from the photos that the original artist shared that she created more than one and now I know why, they are utterly addicting! Consider yourself warned. Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

Valentine Brad Charms

2012-01-24T17:07:00.001-08:00

Yep, I’m still making brads into charms, pendants, key chains, magnets, you name it!

Here are my Valentine ones!

The top two are for sale, $15 each. Use the “Contact Me” button to send an email if you are interested.

The lower one is a prize for a Valentine challenge on the PWA Yahoo Group!

Hugs, Suzanne

Happy New Year ATCs

2012-01-23T23:24:00.001-08:00

Here are a couple of sweet New Year atc’s created by Julie Imsland. She used a freebie collage sheet from our designer Michele Aiello-Zendejas. See how to get it below!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi Beadie Buddies,

I wanted to do something to thank you for purchasing and using my collage sheets and Suzanne's micro beads in your artwork. So, I created a holiday thank you freebie collage sheet set just for you! You can download it here: www.atozdesigns.com/holidaythankyou.html

I hope you like it! :-)

Hugs,
Michele A-Z
WebsiteDesign, Blog Design, & Graphic Design: www.AtoZDesigns.com

Collage Sheets, Digital Stamps, & Printables: www.SwingShiftDesigns.com

Pre-Printed SSD Collage Sheets & Micro Beads: www.PennywiseArts.com

Steampunk Time Bandit

2012-01-16T03:13:00.000-08:00

From “time to time” we have chunky atc swaps on our PWA Yahoo group and it’s always so much fun to create a special one of a kind piece of art to share. This time I was paired up with my friend Lisa. It was great to give it to her in person and watch her reaction! For Lisa’s chunky I covered a wooden block with some old time wrapping paper. Then I distressed it with a brown ink pad.

The head is made from a large watch piece with the inside gears still in tact and turning. The hands on the back of the block also move freely. It has a black micro bead sash and a brooch from a craft store. The arms are mismatched cabinet knobs that move back and forth and up and down. My favorite feature is the feet. Made of clock gears that have been inset together, if you turn one it turns the other. It’s a neat interactive piece!

Hmmmm, I think I need to make another for myself! Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

Happy New Year!!

2011-12-31T23:59:00.000-08:00

May the new year bring you lots of good friends, plenty of crafting time, health, peace and love!

Hugs, Suzanne

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T17:19:00.000-08:00

At Christmastime and always, I am so thankful for the amazing support of friends, family and my O’so faithful customers and fans. Pennywise Arts is what it is thanks to all of you!

Pennywise Arts designer Julie Imsland created this sparkly Christmas greeting atc with lots of layers. From the bottom up it goes like this:

2.5” by 3.5” dark blue cardstock base

2.25” by 3.25” light blue cardstock with a white core. It is embossed with a Cuttlebug snowflake die and then lightly sanded so the white shows through.

Wrap the light blue piece with iridescent fiber and adhere to the dark blue base.

Silver balls were punched for the ornaments with small birds punched and layered onto them with foam tape.

Merry Christmas was stamped onto silver paper which was then covered in O’So Sticky Tape and clear micro beads.

I’m wishing you the Merriest of Christmases!

Hugs, Suzanne

Canning Lids In Disguise

2011-12-23T17:51:00.001-08:00

My friend Kathi Hall showed me that neat ornaments and gift tags can be created using canning lids as a base. I really like the weight it adds, it sure makes it hang nice. I can’t show you the ornament that Kathy did at a shoebox party because I’ve already gifted it but here is my latest:

An image from one of our Christmas collage sheets by Michele Aiello Zendejas of Swing Shift Designs is cut out and the white edges inked with Galaxy Gold Brilliance to tone it down.

A fancy gold embossed napkin was Modge Podged onto a canning lid and trimmed to fit. A mixture of bronze, gold and butterscotch micro beads were glued around the inside edge of the lid with a few ivory seed beads sprinkled for good measure. The image was added with foam pop dots and PWA Bubble beads were glued to the berries on the stocking. This was layered onto cranberry red cardstock.

I found an old plastic doily in my stash o’stuff, and distressed the edges with tan Staz On ink. I really like the texture and “frill” it contributes. I glued ribbon behind it for a hanger and added a piece of coordinating cardstock on the back with “To” and “From” stamped on it. (Not shown)

Kathy found darling red gingham lids at Walmart. They must be really popular this time of year because I couldn’t find them anywhere.

If you need a quick handmade tag our downloadable collage sheets can be sent to your inbox! If you are in a hurry be sure to shoot me a quick email after you place your online order so I don’t miss it! Suzanne@PennywiseArts.com I will be checking for digital orders regularly until the afternoon of Christmas Eve. Orders placed after 3:00 pm Pacific Time on Saturday won’t be sent until Monday.

We have a lot of really fantastic images to choose from and not just for Christmas! New Years is just around the corner with Valentines not too far behind. ;0)

I’m wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas!

Hugs, Suzanne

New Glass Slide Ornaments

2011-12-23T04:23:00.000-08:00

Playing around in my craft room this week I created some new glass slide ornaments from our Christmas collage sheets. I played with different hangers based on ideas from the domino swap as well as the wire wrapping I did on the “Over the river” atc posted on Tuesday of this week.

Left: I cut the ornament hangers into two pieces and wedged the ends between the images that are sandwhiched between the slides. Plastic slides worked best for putting lumping things inside because they will bend just a little.

Center: The hanger is created from a piece of 1/4” O’So wrapped over the top from front to back. Each end touches the glass for a stronger bond. Bead the inside of the loop before removing the liner to bead the outside.

Right: Still not a perfected technique but I do like the wire wrapping with the beads that move back and forth. Getting the loop to land in the middle at the top was harder than I thought it would be, but I don’t have a lot of wire work under my belt yet.

It’s definitely not to late to whip up a few of these yourself! They take only minutes to do. Purchase digital collage sheets from our website, print and cut out. Place between two slides (glass or plastic) then wrap with 1/4” O’So around the edges and fold the excess tape to the front and back to make a frame. Press into micro beads and you’re done.

Hugs and Happy Beading! Suzanne

Creative Ways To Hang A Domino

2011-12-22T04:06:00.000-08:00

It’s always fun to see the ideas that others come up with for hanging dominos. Here are some from the PWA domino swap (and a couple creative ones from past years).

A fancy bead glued to the top.

A bead made from rolling clay and poking a straw through it to create the hole.

Pre drilled dominoes from Pennywise Arts.

An ornament hook glued to the back.

An eye hook screwed into the top.

Ribbon wrapped tightly around the edges and then cinched up through the center of a flat bead. The ribbon is then knotted to hold fast.

A bead glued to the top.

Several pony beads glued to the top (side) edge.

Ribbon wrapped and tied tightly at the top with a knot.

A band of beaded O’So Sticky on the sides (glue was added so the cord wouldn’t slip out.)

A heart shaped clip bent so the bottom sticks up for a hook to attach to.

Wire poked through the holes and twisted back on itself.

When adding things to the top to use for hangers, be sure to use a super strong glue like epoxy, E6000 or Jewel Tac. It needs to be able to hold the heavy weight of a domino and not all glues are strong enough.

Hugs! Suzanne

Pennywise Annual Domino Ornament Swap!

2011-12-21T04:41:00.000-08:00

Here’s a big round of applause to everyone who participated in our annual holiday domino ornament swap! And extra hugs and kisses to our hostess with the mostest, Pam Campbell!

And without further adieu, the lovely “Winter” themed dominoes of 2011!

Suzanne Glazier Because I didn’t want to cut the arms off of my gingerbread man I stamped him onto tissue paper and colored it with colored pencils. Holly and berries were also stamped and colored to fill in white spaces.

I used Diamond Glaze to attach the tissue to the drilled domino and give it a glossy finish. Sure Tac glue was used as “frosting” for the waves and ultra fine white opaque micro beads were sprinkled on.Red Stickles (glitter glue) added sparkle to his cheeks and I dipped the bottom edge into a snow medium that was the consistency of marshmallow cream. (Fun! Ü)

Copper wire was poked through the tissue and into the pre dilled holes of the domino. The ends were wrapped several times and the middle was twirled around a pencil to make it curly.

Annette Lanker chose images from our collage sheets. She beaded the top with clear ultra fine micro beads and the sides with a mixture of red, green and gold opaque micro beads.

Debbie Shults sends “Cool Winter Wishes” from Barbie! Her dom is covered with clear micro beads and the sides have white opaque micro beads and glitter added over 1/4” O’So Sticky Tape.

Julie Imsland colored her little elfish fellow with Copic markers. The shovel was “fussy cut” to fit into his hand. This cute little guy is “clear”ing micro bead snow from his sidewalk.

Karen Slusher used sparkly stickers and Diamond Glaze on her doms. The sides were edged with 1/4” O’So Sticky Tape and silver opaque micro beads.

I can’t tell for sure if Kathi Hall’s domino is embossed or if it might be a napkin applied with Modge Podge. Either way the effect is pretty and bright! Kathi edged her design with 1/4” O’So Sticky Tape and masked off a strip in the middle with a rickrack pattern in red and white opaque micro beads.

Kathy Bledsoe’s little skater is all bundled up complete with a red micro bead stripe on her sweater. Kathy’s unique hanging attachment gives the illusion that her domino is drilled through from top to bottom, but it’s not! So clever! I will show how each dom is hung in my next post, there are so many good ideas!

Kelli Green uses a holiday collage image coated with a thick clear glaze finish. The edges are bordered with a mixture of coordinating micro beads to create a frame around the top and sides.

Laura Davis’s adorable snowman is a domino all dressed up for winter. His hat is made of felt, face is made from tiny seed beads and his scarf is a piece of gingham ribbon wrapped around his neck and secured to the front with glue. He’s hanging out in a micro bead snow bank edged with glitter glue.

Lori Botkin’s domino has so many creative embellishments! It jingles from the little bells along the bottom and the miniature Christmas lights are so adorable!

Melissa Ragsdill’s little angel is made from two dominoes, one standard and one mini layered on white flower petals. The head is a painted wooden button and the wings are tipped with SureTac glue and mini micro beads.

Michelle McCarthy’s design sports a cool penguin. The face of the domino is colored with markers then embellished with puffy snow and glittery accents. For the sides, Michelle wrapped the edges with O’So Sticky Tape then tied silver ribbon around it. The rest of the exposed O’So was dipped into silver and blue opaque micro beads.

Pam Campbell made two different designs for her doms. This snowman is sitting in a sparkly bank of micro beads catching snowflakes. Clear seed beads and a snowflake charm complete the dangles on the bottom.

Sandy Belair’s ornaments have many layers that create a fully textured and dimensional effect. The doms were inked in a lettuce green color then covered with O’So Sticky Tape. Red crocheted ribbon was laid onto the O’So and clear micro beads filled in around it. Gems, cording, red opaque micro beads and puffy stickers complete the festive design.

Sherry Schauble created a snowman complete with his own die cut and glittered snowflake. His Santa hat and scarf are lined with white opaque micro beads and the sides are finished with 1/8” O’So Sticky Tape and blue translucent micro beads.

Thanks to all of you, for making our last swap of the year an excellent one!

Hugs, Suzanne

Snowman Party Favor

2011-12-20T11:37:00.001-08:00

I’m hurrying to squeeze in all of the fun things I’ve been working on for Christmas, in case you need easy last minute ideas!

Look at this adorable snowman candy bar dressed up in a sheet of white printer paper and embellished with things you probably already have on hand: gems, paper, paint, felt. Do one in just 10 minutes or so or set up a production line and make 10 in under and hour. He looks very similar to Laura Davis’s domino ornament! I think my snowman needs a bank of micro beads snow along the bottom too!

Hugs and Happy Holidays, Suzanne

To Grandmother’s House We Go

2011-12-20T01:18:00.000-08:00

This is one of my all time favorite holiday atcs. It was simple to make and still makes a really bold statement.

Torn papers are layered to create the base. Then I cut hearts from O’So Sticky Tape placed onto red cardstock. The hearts are beaded with red opaque micro beads and added to the card with foam tape.

A few loose seed beads were strung onto wire which was then wrapped around the atc 3 times. The ends of the wire were curled forward and the whole thing was layered onto a piece of coordinating cardstock to hide the wire in the back.

The stamp I used is from My Sentiments Exactly. I loved singing that song as a child so that’s what drew me to it. Ü

A double slit punch was used to make the holes for weaving the ribbon through. I like this method because it lays flatter than a bow and looks just as nice.

Hugs, Suzanne

Snowy Scene Shaker Ornament

2011-12-19T21:34:00.001-08:00

PWA designer Julie Imsland created a totally new and unique idea using two shaker card pouches!

Julie shares her “how to”:

Supplies:

2 – Impression Obsession Oval “Shake It” Shaker Card Pouches from Pennywise Arts

Core’dinations Whitewash Collection Cardstock, Butterchurn

Pennywise Arts- White Opaque Micro Beads, 1/8” O’So Sticky Tape

SureTac Glue

White chipboard scraps

Narrow White Cording

White RickRack Trim

Ek Success™ Alpine Trail Edge Punch

Martha Stewart Crafts™ Frosty Village Edge Punch

Directions:

Make a template for the inside of the shaker by laying an oval shaker pouch face down on a chipboard scrap. With a pencil trace around the small oval face and cut this pattern out inside the pencil line. Check to make sure this template will fit the inside edge of the shaker. Trim as needed.

Cut 1 ½”, 2 ¼”, 2 ¾” strips of the Butterchurn paper in 4” lengths. (Note one side of the paper is pale yellow and the other is white.)

For the snowy scene: Punch 2 narrow and 3 wide strips with the Alpine Trail edge punch. Punch 2 medium strips with the Frosty Village edge punch.

Cut 4 spacers from chipboard scraps. These will be trimmed to be hidden between some of the scene strips to create dimension.

Create layered shaker scene using the oval template as a pattern to mark and trim the sides of each strip, and gradually reduce the height of each layer. Note one side of the paper is pale yellow and the other is white; refer to the list below to know which color should be facing outward.

Layer strips as follows using a tape runner or glue stick to attach the layers:

1. Narrow white trees

2. Chipboard spacer

3. Medium white village

4. Wide yellow trees

5. Chipboard spacer

6. Wide white trees—this is the tallest strip, turn it over and these will be yellow trees

7. Chipboard spacer

8. Wide white trees

9. Medium yellow village

10. Chipboard spacer

11. Narrow white trees

Peel the cover from the adhesive around the outside edge of one of the shaker pouches. Dot the bottom edge of the layered stack with SureTac glue to adhere the stacked snowy scene inside the shaker. Spoon about a teaspoon of white micro beads into the shaker.

Peel the cover from the adhesive of the remaining shaker pouch add a bead of SureTac glue all the way around and carefully stick the two adhesive edges together. Pinch them tightly all around the outside edge to insure not beads will “escape”.

Dot a bit of SureTac glue at the two side and along the bottom of the shaker to secure a narrow cord for hanging the ornament.

Use 1/8” O’So Sticky tape to adhere rick rack around the outside edge of each side of the shaker.

So stunning Julie! Thanks for sharing!

Hugs, Suzanne

Snowman Domino

2011-12-17T17:28:00.000-08:00

After digging through my craft room I finally unearthed one of the dominoes I created for a Pennywise Arts swap. (Maybe two years ago?)

A regular domino is transformed into a Christmas ornament (or in this case a magnet) with a snowman stamp from Stampin Up!, Staz On black ink and Adirondack markers from Ranger.

The sides are colored silver with a Krylon paint pen and left to dry. Then 1/4” O'So Sticky Tape is wrapped around the outside and pressed into clear micro beads.

I sprayed a light spritz of silver glitter spray over the top to look like snowflakes and then sealed it with a thick clear spray glaze.

I just received my package of swapped doms so in the next few days I will have photos of this years Pennywise Arts Yahoo group domino swap.

Hugs, Suzanne

Holiday Candle Lights

2011-12-16T02:59:00.000-08:00

Heavy decorative paper was used to create this festive gift box. A Scor It tool provides interesting texture lines (hard to see in the photo).

Inside neatly nested are four votive candles.

A template for any glass votive can be made by wrapping it with paper and trimming the edges to fit. Then the template can be traced directly onto a sheet of O'So Sticky Tape. All four votives are wrapped with O'So Sticky Tape and embellished using masking techniques. Save the liners from the O'So Tape to use as release paper masks. Always put the shiny side down when using release papers. The other side of the liner is designed to be able to write and draw on and will not release if place onto O'So

Candy Candle: Release paper from the O'So was hand cut into circles and swirls. First, all the circles are placed shiny side down onto the exposed O'So and the whole votive rolled in Lettuce Translucent micro beads. Then the circle masks are removed and the swirls put into place in the centers (shiny side down)/ Then White Opaque micro beads are sprinkled into each area. Finally the swirl masks are removed and Red Opaque micro beads complete the candy centers.

Red Candy Candle: Decorative paper circles were punched and placed on the the exposed O'So Sticky Tape. Then the votive rolled in Red Translucent micro beads. The candy circles were added with foam tape for dimension.

Snowflake Candle: Snowflakes are punched from the release paper and placed shiny side down onto the exposed O'So Sticky Tape. A 1/4" strip of liner is put around the top edge of the votive and the candle is rolled into Gold Opaque Micro Beads. Then the 1/4" strip is removed and the exposed tape is dipped into Lettuce Translucent Micro Beads. Lastly, the snowflake masks are removed and White Opaque micro beads are sprinkled onto the exposed tape.

Holly Candle: Holly and berries were hand drawn onto the liner from O'So Sticky Tape, cut out and placed shiny side down onto the exposed tape on the votive. The candle was then rolled in clear Mini micro beads. The holly masks were then removed and the leaves cut from the berries. The berries were then put back, shiny side down. The holly leaves were beaded with Lettuce Translucent micro beads and then the berries in Red Opaque micro beads.

Finish off the box with ribbons and a gift tag.

May your holidays be bright and sparkly!

Hugs!
Suzanne

Holiday Lights Chunky ATC

2011-12-16T01:25:00.000-08:00

Vicki Chow also participated in the Gingersnap Creations “holiday lights” challenge. Her chunky ATC is so fun!

The lights were die cut with O’So Sticky Tape on the colored papers. All Vicki had to do next was peel the liner and dip into clear micro beads.

The star on top has a border of mixed micro beads and the back side of Vicki’s ATC has a big beaded poinsetta.

Vicki said that to start she just laid a bunch of Christmas stuff on her craft table and went to town. The chunky atc block came from Pennywise Arts. She wrapped it with fabric and then let her creative muse take it from there.

Vicki is a super talented lady, I hope she’ll share more of her artwork again soon! Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

Beaded Holiday Lights

2011-12-13T01:25:00.000-08:00

How much fun are these micro beaded holiday lights by Debbie Warren?!!

Debbie started with an inexpensive strand of decorative lights that came with clear plastic additions (flowers, bells, leaves, etc)

She used alcohol inks on the plastic petals to color them and a clear drying glue to add clear micro beads to the tips of the petals for icicles.

Then Debbie put pieces of O'So Sticky Tape over the tips of the light bulbs and dipped them into clear micro beads for the sparkly middles. O'So Sticky Tape is heat resistant and won't melt or burn on the lights.

So clever she is!

Hugs, Suzanne

Santa’s Sleigh Snow Globe Ornament

2011-12-12T01:10:00.000-08:00

This O’so pretty ornament was made by PWA Design Team member Dee Moran.

Here’s how she did it:

Supplies:

One clear 2” glass ornament

Iridescent Bubble Beads (Pennywise Arts)

Transparency (3 inch square) (Pennywise Arts – near the bottom of the page)

Rubber stamp of your choice (this one is from Stampin Up)

Thin cording

Small hole punch

Black Staz On ink

Sharpie pens

Cut a 2” circle out of the Transparency. Stamp image onto the transparency using the Staz On ink and stamp of choice. Color image with Sharpie pens. Dabbing a paper towel over the colored image will even out the look. Let it dry for a few minutes.

Punch a hole at the top of the transparency and thread the thin cording through it.

Remove the cap from the clear glass ornament, then roll up the dry transparency and push it down inside, leaving the cording hanging out. It will open up once inside the ball. Tie a knot in the cord. (The knot is left on the outside of the ornament and is held in place by the cap and hidden when the embellishments are added.) Pour Iridescent Bubble Beads into the ornament and put the cap back onto the ball leaving the corded knot on the outside. Decorate with ribbons, fibers, wire and flowers.

Hugs, Suzanne

**Another variation that Dee said works well is to print a holiday image from one of our collage sheets onto a transparency and insert that inside.

Sparkly Lighted Ornaments

2011-12-09T10:04:00.001-08:00

Pennywise Arts is sponsoring the month of December on Gingersnap Creations and many PWA artists will be featured there. Yesterday on Gingersnap Creations our very own Michele Aiello-Zendejas shared some stunning beaded ornaments with an easy step by step tutorial so you can make them too!

Supplies:

Swing Shift Designs Christmas Slide Soup Collage Sheet, Designed by Michele Aiello-Zendejas exclusively for Pennywise Arts (Three Kings and the Star of Bethlehem slides)
Pennywise Arts Iridescent Bubble Beads
Pennywise Arts Ultra Fine Micro Beads
Pennywise Arts Mini Micro Beads
Pennywise Arts O'So Sticky Tape Mega Roll
Pennywise Arts O'So Sticjy Tape 1/4” Roll
Pennywise Arts Shake It Clear Shaker Card Windows, Small Square
Pennywise Arts Sure Tac Craft Glue
Acrylic Flowers
Faceted Round Beads, in graduated sizes
Mini Star Punch
Small Star Punch
1/16" Round Punch
2” Round Punch
Transparent Clear Film (aka 8 ½ x 11 Clear Transparency Sheet – you only need about a 2” square of it)
Microscope Slides Plastic or Glass (I used plastic for these projects.)
Head Pins
Craft Wire
Battery Operated Tea Light Candles
Ruler
Pen or Pencil
Chopstick
Heavy Duty Single Side Clear Tape
Re moveable Single Side Clear Tape
Glue Gun & Glue Sticks

Instructions for the 3-Sided (Triangle) Ornament:

1. Cut out the three images that you want to use from the Swing Shift Designs Christmas Slide Soup Collage Sheet, Designed by Michele Aiello-Zendejas exclusively for Pennywise Arts. I used the two of the Three Kings slides and the Star of Bethlehem for this ornament.
2. Adhere the slides to the back of the images. Note: You won't see the slides, they are used for support only. You could use chipboard or very heavy cardstock instead of slides for the 3-sided slide ornament, but not for the 4- or 5-sided slide ornament. The 4- and 5-slide ornaments are lighted, so the support has to be transparent.
3. Peel one side of the backing off of a sheet/piece of O'So Sticky Tape. Lay the three slides face down onto the exposed adhesive. Leave a very small space, 2mm or the thickness of your slides, between the slides so you can fold the sheet with the microscope slides stuck to it into a triangle shape later.
4. The three slides are now held together by the O'So Sticky tape that you added in step 3. Trim the excess tape off around the outer slides. DO NOT cut between the three slides or separate them.
5. Peel off the rest of the backing, then dip the front side of the attached slides into a 50/50 mixture of Pennywise Arts Ultra Fine Micro Beads and Pennywise Arts Mini Micro Beads.
6. Place a piece of single side heavy duty tape on the back along one side of the attached slides and then carefully fold the three slides into a triangle shape. Use a chopstick to reach inside of the triangle and press the tape onto the back of the slides to secure them.
7. Run a piece 1/4” width piece of O'So Sticky Tape around the top and bottom of the ornament. Remove the protective liner and then dip it into the PWA bubble beads and then into a 50/50 mixture of PWA's Ultra Fine Micro Beads and PWA's Mini Micro Beads.
8. Attach 1 piece of 3” long wire to the inside (approximated ¼ to 1/2” in) at the top and bottom of each slide with hot glue.
9. Gather the three wires on the bottom and slide the beads on from large to small. Then bend the excess wire into a curl or scroll. Gather the three wires at the top and slide the beads on from large to small. Twist the wires together and bend into a loop. Add a hook and hang it on your tree!

Instructions for the 4-Sided (Quadrilateral/Square) Lighted Ornament:

1. Cut out the four images that you want to use from the Swing Shift Designs Christmas Slide Soup Collage Sheet, Designed by Michele Aiello-Zendejas exclusively for Pennywise Arts. I used all three of the Three Kings slide images and the Star of Bethlehem slide image for this ornament.
2. Adhere the microscope slides to the back of the images with O'So Sticky Tape.
3. Adhere O'So Sticky Tape to the front of each image. Remove the protective liner and then dip it into a 50/50 mixture of PWA's Ultra Fine Micro Beads and PWA's Mini Micro Beads.
4. Cut a hole out of the center of a small square Shake It Shaker Card Window large enough for the Battery Operated Tea Light Candle to fit through. This will be the base.
5. Measure around the Battery Operated Tea Light Candle, then add ¼ to 1/2” for overlap. Cut a piece of Transparent Film to the length you just measured by 3” tall. Roll it into a tube and secure with clear tape. It should fit easily around the Battery Operated Tea Light Candle. Attach the clear tube to the bottom Shake It square with clear tape. Insert the Battery Operated Tea Light Candle from the hole in the bottom and secure it with clear removable tape. Do not glue it in. You want to be able to remove it so you can change it out when the battery goes dead.
6. Apply O'So Sticky Tape to the top part of the base piece. Remove the liner. Place a 1/4” strip of O'So Sticky Tape down the center of each slide. Remove the protective liner from the tape and attach the four image slides evenly spaced around the clear tube. The slides should now be connected to the tube and to the base, one on each side of the base.
7. Use another small square Shake It Shaker Card Window for the top of this project. Secure it to the top of the four image slides with thin strips of O'So Sticky Tape.
8. Cover the top Shake It Shaker Card Window with O'So Sticky Tape. Remove the liner to expose the tape.
9. Add some beads, small to large, onto a head pin. Bend and trim the excess wire from the head pin and then attach it to the top of the project. It should be centered on top of the Shake It Shaker Card Window.
10. Attach four acrylic flowers to the base, and four flowers around the beaded head pin on the top of the project.
11. Dip the exposed tape on the top and base into the PWA bubble beads and then into a 50/50 mixture of PWA's Ultra Fine Micro Beads and PWA's Mini Micro Beads.

Instructions for the 5-Sided (Pentagon) Lighted Ornament:

1. Cut out the five images that you want to use from the Swing Shift Designs Christmas Slide Soup Collage Sheet, Designed by Michele Aiello-Zendejas exclusively for Pennywise Arts. I used all three of the Three Kings slide images and two of the Star of Bethlehem slide images for this ornament. Set one Star of Bethlehem slide images aside. Punch a few tiny stars out of each of The Kings slides and one of the Star of Bethlehem Slides, then punch out a few 1/16” circles in all five slides. Now punch a small star out of the center of of the Star of Bethlehem slide image that you set aside. Punch out a few 1/16” circles from this slide as well.
2. Adhere the microscope slides to the back of the images using O'So Sticky Tape. Note: The microscope slides are used for support. The 5 sided slide ornament is lighted, so the support has to be transparent.
3. Peel one side of the backing off of a sheet/piece of O'So Sticky Tape. Lay the five microscope slides face down onto the exposed adhesive. Leave a very small space, 2mm or the thickness of your microscope slides, between the microscope slides so you can fold the sheet with the microscope slides stuck to it into a pentagon shape later.
4. The five microscope slides are now held together by the O'So Sticky tape that you added in step 3. Trim the excess tape off around the outer microscope slides. DO NOT cut between the five microscope slides or separate them.
5. Peel off the rest of the backing, then dip the front side of the attached microscope slides into a 50/50 mixture of Pennywise Arts Ultra Fine Micro Beads and Pennywise Arts Mini Micro Beads.
6. Place a piece of single side heavy duty tape on the back along one side of the attached microscope slides and then carefully fold the five microscope slides into a pentagon shape. Use a chopstick to reach inside of the pentagon and press the tape onto the back of the adjoining microscope slide to secure it.
7. Punch or cut a 2” circle (or larger, depending on the thickness of your microscope slides) from the Clear Transparent Film. Use the 5 sided ornament as a template and place a dot where the 5 corners meet, all the way around the circle.
8. Cover both sides of the 2” circle with O'So Sticky Tape. Punch a 1/16” inch hole into the center of the circle. Thread a head pin through the hole you just punched. Place a small piece of tape on the head of the head pin to secure it to the circle. Remove the bottom layer of protective backing from the tape and adhere the circle to the top of the 5 sided ornament, fold the tape down onto the sides of the ornament.
9. Remove the protective liner from the tape. Thread the faceted beads, from large to small, onto the head pin. Bend the head pin into a hook shape. Place 5 acrylic flowers around the newly beaded head pin. Then dip it into the PWA bubble beads and then into a 50/50 mixture of PWA's Ultra Fine Micro Beads and PWA's Mini Micro Beads.
10. Run a piece 1/4” width piece of O'So Sticky Tape around the top and bottom of the ornament. Remove the protective liner and then dip it into the PWA bubble beads and then into a 50/50 mixture of PWA's Ultra Fine Micro Beads and PWA's Mini Micro Beads.
11. Place a Battery-Operated Tea Light Candle inside the bottom of the ornament. The battery should fit snugly. If your battery operated candle falls out, use a few small pieces of clear transparent film as a shim to keep it inside the ornament. Do not glue it in. You want to be able to remove it so you can change it out when the battery goes dead.

Reminder: never leave anything producing heat unattended.
Thanks Michele for sharing your amazing talent and inspiring us with your creative ideas!

Hugs, Suzanne

Snowman Starlight Shaker Card

2011-12-09T03:07:00.000-08:00

This simple shaker card and tutorial was featured on Gingersnap Creations blog ! We are having so much fun sponsoring the month of December and seeing all of the beadiful things that the GSC design team and members are sharing! Be sure to check them out!

Snowman Starlight Shaker Card and Tutorial by Suzanne Glazier

Supplies:

ATC shaker card template - http://www.pennywisearts.com/supersimpleshakercards.html

Acetate

Black Staz On Ink

Snowman Stamp

Snowflake Stamp

Foam Tape

Galaxy Markers

Versamark Ink

Coordinating Cardstock

Clear Micro Beads from Pennywise Arts

Opal flakes

Basic instructions on constructing a Super Simple Shaker Card can be found on the Pennywise Arts website in the class archives: http://www.pennywisearts.com/supersimpleshakercards.html

For this "Snowman Light" shaker the image was stamped onto acetate with black Staz On Ink and colored from the back side with Galaxy markers.

The large snowflakes were stamped using Versa Mark ink for a watermark effect.

The shaker window is filled with clear micro beads and opal flakes.

Hugs!
Suzanne

Pennywise Arts, where your favorite color can be clear! www.PennywiseArts.Com

Sweet Family Photo Ornament

2011-12-09T01:08:00.000-08:00

Vintage family photos make wonderful keepsake ornaments!

For this one Dot Alcorn started with a round chipboard base. The photo was then layered on and the mixture of black, white and silver micro beads were added to the edges with O'So Sticky Tape.

My friend Kathi Hall told me about another fun ornament base – canning lids! They have darling red and white checked ones available that make wonderful Christmas ornament bases.

Place a family photo on the plain side and make a “To” and “From” signature on the gingham side with a Sharpie marker.

A Crop-A-Dile tool easily punches holes through the lid for the ribbon to thread through.

Oh! These ornaments could also be used as the gift tag on a present!

So many ideas, so little time!

Hugs, Suzanne

Holiday Mice Tin

2011-12-08T01:41:00.000-08:00

Another fun creation from Dot Alcorn is this cute gift tin.

The outside uses an adorable mouse image from our "Christmas 5" collage sheet.

Dot covered the lid with O’So Sticky Tape then placed the image in the middle. Gold micro beads filled in the edges to create the border.

Inside the tin Dot glued paper, embellishments and pearls. While the glue was still wet she sprinkled micro beads on for an icy effect.

I think decorated tins would make a great presentation for gift cards!

Hugs, Suzanne

Pennywise QR Code!

2011-12-07T21:25:00.001-08:00

Thanks to Michele Aiello-Zendejas for creating a QR code for smart phones that will take you right to our website!

Just scan the above photo with your barcode scanner app on your phone and voila!

Winter White Christmas Card

2011-12-06T01:53:00.000-08:00

Dot Alcorn also created this pretty card using an image from our "Christmas 5" collage sheet.

I love being able to share art made by others! Thank you so much for participating in the Gingersnap challenge Dot!

Hugs, Suzanne

Victorian Christmas Card

2011-12-04T01:53:00.000-08:00

Thanks to PWA “Beadie Buddy” Dot Alcorn for joining us in the Gingersnap holiday challenge! Dot created this elegant card using our "Christmas 5" collage sheet.

For a sparkly look Dot added clear ultrafine micro beads over the top of the image with O'So Sticky Tape.

Nice work Dot!

Hugs, Suzanne

Silver and Gold Ornament

2011-11-29T01:54:00.000-08:00

I would consider this silver and gold ornament to be "altered". The frame came in a boxed set with the red ribbon already attached. The image of the couple admiring their holiday lights is from our Swingshift Designs Christmas 9 collage sheet.

I filled in the swirly parts of the frame with Sure Tac glue from Pennywise Arts and sprinkled gold beads on top. (Any clear drying glue will work). I gently tapped off the loose beads and let it dry thoroughly. Pressing the beads into the glue would cause them to loose some of the sheen, so I resisted the urge to do that. Ü

What a quick keepsake!

Time to put image in frame: 1 minute

Time to add the beads: 2 minutes

Drying time doesn't count because I was sleeping.

Hugs!
Suzanne

Pennywise Arts, where your favorite color can be clear! www.PennywiseArts.Com

Christmas Memories

2011-11-28T00:03:00.000-08:00

Jean Sunderman’s Christmas memory book is a sweet treasure. She incorporated her own childhood photos with lots of PWA products and fun embellishments. I made the photos large so hopefully you can see all the little details!

For all of the pages Jean covered cds with Graphic 45 Christmas papers and distressed them with Ancient Photo Ink. Holes were punched with a Crop-O-Dial.

For the cover Jean used a Shake It Circle pouch filled with Iridescent Bubble Beads over the photo of her with Santa. Both products are available from Pennywise Arts.

For the next page the photo was punched into a square and distressed. The Santa's Workshop coupon and collage image (from PWA and Swingshift Designs Christmas Fun 2 sheet) were raised up with foam tape.

On the third cd Jean used photo corners and snowmen from the Snowmen 1 collage sheet. The smaller snowman peeks out from behind an eye piece embellishment. A snowflake charm hangs over the edge.

On the last page Jean covered the frame using an O'So sticky Tape sheet and Ultra Fine clear micro beads. The gingerbread man is cut from the Christmas Fun 2 collage sheet.

I love making meaningful gifts for friends and family at Christmastime. When I imagine my handiwork being treasured by future generations it’s a good feeling. When I imagine Jean creating this keepsake of her childhood for herself, that really makes my heart feel warm.

Hugs, Suzanne

Shop Small for FREE Shipping!

2011-11-23T10:54:00.001-08:00

PWA is getting ready for Small Business Saturday on Nov 26th! Come shop with us to support small businesses! Click this to get to the Pennywise Arts website.

We are offering FREE SHIPPING on orders of $25 or more this Saturday AND Sunday! Orders that qualify will automatically receive free shipping during the check out process.

Free Shipping offer does not apply to preorders, only to in stock items that can ship on Monday.

Pennywise Arts is so blessed to have so many customers and friends that understand what a big difference shopping with a small business can make. Thank you for all of your support!!

Hugs, Suzanne

May All Your Pumpkins Be Plump!

2011-11-20T02:45:00.000-08:00

These “Stamptastic” pumpkins are my favorite stamp to use this time of year. I colored the image with colored pencils and then put O’So Sticky Tape over the top and cut it out.

I peeled the liner off and carefully sprinkled Lettuce Translucent Mini Micro Beads randomly over the green leafy areas. I used the liner to set them firmly into the tape and then dipped the whole thing into Clear Ultra Fine Micro Beads to fill in all of the open areas. This close up shows the dimension between the two sized beads.

Behind the pumpkins is a sleeve created by cutting an orange envelope into fourths. The pocket is open on two sides and stamped with a cheese cloth texture stamp from Stampin’ Up!. The gem is to help make it more noticeable that something actually pulls out of the pocket. Isn’t that the cutest saying? The stamp is from Ann-ticipations. Several customers received one of these in their order envelope as a surprise last week! Ü Enjoy!

Hugs, Suzanne

Altered Cigar Mail Box

2011-11-18T02:24:00.000-08:00

When this altered cigar box arrived in my mail it took my breath away! Dee Moran’s attention to the details made me want to keep looking and looking to make sure I didn’t miss a thing! Ü I’ll be sure to hit the highlights here for you as best I can.

Above right is a close up of the handle that opens the box. Dee added the front flap to the cigar box as part of her alterations.

Here is a top view:

Dee used 1/4” O’So Sticky Tape to adhere black opaque micro beads adding decorative texture along the base of her black lace paper edging:

A view of the front:

One side view:

Inside the lid Dee put corkboard and decorated push pins (not shown). The box has separate sections for hand stamped note paper, a matching pen, a Post It note pad with an elegant coordinating cover, a pocket for postage stamps, another pocket for labels and some very fun clips!

The embellishment of the paper and binder clips is my favorite detail of them all:

This time of year I look at everything with the eye of “does this project have gift potential?” An altered cigar box made into a sweet box for mail supplies is right up there on the list of “I could do that”! Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

Holiday Chipboard Pins

2011-11-17T03:31:00.000-08:00

If you are looking to make something simple to give to teachers, friends or co-workers these darling beaded pins are a winner!

A stamped design is layered onto a chipboard backing for durability then O’So Sticky Tape is placed over the top. The edges are dipped in a colorful mixture of micro beads and the center is filled in with clear beads for a sparkly finish. Add a pin or magnet to the back and it’s done!

Beadie Buddy, Beth Ullman made these cute samples!

Hugs, Suzanne

Ornaments From Glass Slides

2011-11-16T05:29:00.000-08:00

These glass slide ornaments are a huge hit every year – I know because we sell gobs of the collage sheets for it every holiday season! Michele Aiello-Zendejas of Swingshift Designs created several of the sheets to be perfectly sized for glass slides and inchies.

These two were made by PWA Designer Yvonne Grimes.

Collage images were placed between two glass microscope slides and 1/4” O’So Sticky Tape was run around the edges to create the frame and hold the micro beads. Even her hanger was made from O’So and beads! You can see more variations on our website tutorial page.

We have a really nice selection of Christmas collage sheets on our website that can be purchased in print or digital form. Any of them could be trimmed to fit a slide to make these ornaments!

Hugs, Suzanne

This week we are spotlighting projects from the Pennywise Arts website that would make great Christmas gifts. We have a plethora of artwork in our gallery and gobs of tutorials in our past online classes section.

Glass Blocks Revisited

2011-11-15T05:19:00.000-08:00

Another show stopper has been the holiday glass block tutorial. I shortcut and use gorgeous holiday napkins to hurry mine along. I do love instant gratification!

I’ve also seen the blocks sold in craft stores with the holes already drilled in them – even better! Things have come a long way baby!

Hugs, Suzanne

3-D Stars

2011-11-14T05:13:00.000-08:00

If you need ideas for Christmas gifts this year, don’t forget that we have a huge collection of artwork in our gallery and gobs of tutorials in our past online classes section.

This week I’ll be highlighting a few of my favorites:

This 3-D star is really fun to make! The templates and instructions are just a click away! Included in the complete photo tutorial are three different sized printable star patterns to choose from courtesy of Mr. Brian my template making man. Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

The Little Things

2011-11-14T02:29:00.000-08:00

Here’s a pretty Autumn artist trading card that I received from PWA designer, Michelle McCarthy.

All of the layers and patterns on this card really make it “pop”!

The accent background paper with the mini micro beads over the top of it looks so sparkly! It’s a perfect place for a maple leaf to land. Ü

Thanks for sharing with me Michelle!

Hugs, Suzanne

A Spoonful of Bliss

2011-11-12T05:00:00.000-08:00

I just love this pretty altered spoon by Marianne Colschen! She took a plain spoon, added the word “Bliss” with a P-Touch label then inked it with alcohol inks.

Then Marianne added colored micro beads around the edges with Sure Tac glue which dries clear.

I could see a whole spoon collection hanging on the wall with different colors and words on each! Too much fun!

Thanks for sharing Marianne!

Hugs, Suzanne

Another Installment of Domino Ornaments

2011-11-10T06:21:00.000-08:00

Kathi Hall’s “Peace on Earth” ornament has a really thick and glossy finish on the top, I love how it looks and feels!

Snow Davison made this Santa domino for me many years ago. In fact it was the first domino ornament I had ever seen and I was in love!

And last but not least is one made by Terry Townsend. I think she decoupaged a fancy napkin onto the domino. Then she covered it with clear micro beads. Sometimes it’s really hard to get a good picture when clear beads are involved, they just want to shine and reflect. It’s their nature and they can’t help it. Ü I’m sorry I couldn’t get a better photo for you of Terry’s ornament. You just have to come over and see it in person.

Here are some more of the lovely dominos in my collection!

Lisa Blakeney made the snowflake at left. Clear micro beads garnish the sides for an icy wintery look.

Michele Aiello-Zendejas decked her poinsettias out with gold micro beads and a fun tassel.

Our Beadie Buddy Theresa Dalzell-Wells used one of the Swing Shift Designs collage sheets from the Pennywise site on her domino at left. Clear Ultra Fine micro beads cover the top and a mixture of blue and silver adorns the sides.

I get so caught up in sharing and giving that I didn’t seem to save any of the ones that I made! If you have one and come across it when you unpack your decorations this year, won’t you please send me a picture? I’d really appreciate it!

Hugs, Suzanne

P.S. Don’t forget that Pennywise has pre-drilled dominoes on the “beadables” page of our website to make it quicker and easier than ever to whip up some ornaments of your own!

Domino Ornaments

2011-11-09T12:09:00.000-08:00

It’s tradition on our Pennywise Arts Yahoo group to have a domino swap each year. Here are some from past years!

The kitty angel on the right is by Hitomi Nakatani.

Diane Walter made this stocking stuffer at right.

My long time Beadie Buddie Carolyn Glein sent me the silver star ornament on the right several years ago. I loved the ornament and the way she presented it attached to a holiday greeting. So much so that I’ve saved both and keep them out to enjoy all year long.

So many of you have been so generous in sharing your artwork with me. I feel blessed and inspired by each one and appreciate you more than you know!

The beaded poinsettia at left is so pretty. I wish I knew who made it!Grace Merchant did the holiday lamppost.

Thanks, for making me feel so special. Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

P.S. Don’t forget that Pennywise Arts has made it even easier for you to make your own gorgeous domino ornaments! With holes pre-drilled from side to side all you need to do is decorate and hang!

Dominoes For Pins and Pendants

2011-11-08T17:46:00.001-08:00

Autumn is an exciting time! I love the changing colors on the trees and getting my comfy sweaters and sweatshirts out of the back of my closet. November always reminds me that the holidays are nearing and “Craft Season” is in full swing!

Every year I vow to myself that I will have all of my gifts completed by Thanksgiving. The times I’ve succeeded have been some of the most enjoyable and memorable holidays. When I’ve achieved my Thanksgiving goal I’ve had more time to spend with friends and family. I’ve felt relaxed, ready and open to more Christmas magic and spontaneity. That in itself should be enough motivation but my “wonder woman” mentality still gets the best of me every couple of years and I procrastinate until the last minute.

This year, I need a plan. Thanksgiving is just a few weeks away and I better get busy! I’m thinking about making jewelry for the women on my gift list. I have several (okay, quite a lot!) of the brad pendants ready to go and I would also like to do some domino pendants. Below are some created by Evelyn Spikes. Evelyn’s art is great inspiration!

Dominoes are an excellent stamping surface. No bleaching is necessary when using Staz On or alcohol based inks or even the Adirondak markers from Ranger. If you prefer to use colored pencils or Twinkling H2Os an overnight soak in bleach will insure success. Rinse thoroughly with water and they are ready to go.

Here’s a pendant that I made several years ago. (When my photography was way worse than it is now!)

I stamped the image (from Stampin Up!) with black Staz On ink and used the pad to color the sides and the back black. The image was painted with Twinkling H2Os. I used a clear sealer over the top to protect it from scratching. Black micro beads were added around the edges with 1/4” O’So Sticky Tape.

Pennywise Arts has gorgeous pre-drilled dominoes for handmade pins, pendants and ornaments. The predrilled hole goes clear through and makes for a more secure and easy to assemble pendant or hanger for ornaments. If the hole isn’t needed it can be quickly filled with spackle or white toothpaste or covered with micro beads or ribbon.

Our drilled dominoes are brand new, standard full size dominoes. They measure 1" wide, 2" tall and 3/8" thick. The hole is 1/8" in diameter. They can be purchased on our website. If you prefer to pay by credit card or money order just shoot me an email with your phone number and I’ll fix you up!

Tomorrow I will be posting Christmas ornaments made from dominos in our art swap on the Pennywise Yahoo Group!

Hugs, Suzanne

Passing On The Queen’s Cape

2011-11-04T18:42:00.000-07:00

Just for fun (and because I'm really not using it any more) I have listed my "queen's cape" on eBay. I think it would be great as a Renaissance or Christmas Pageant costume!

I just happened to wear it on national television (she says in casual passing). Ü

It was in January of 2005 when HTGV came to my home to film me “Beading The World” for their show “Crafters Coast To Coast”. It was an incredible and terrifying experience! It took 8 hours to create the three projects I had submitted. An African themed shaker card, a matching beaded pen and my favorite an African themed treasure/jewelry box.

When the show aired, it just worked out that it was on a Monday following our annual PWA spring retreat, so lots of my beadie buddies stayed over an extra night and we all went to watch my national debut on the big screen at The Lucky 7 Saloon in Kirkland, WA.

This is Marianne, Kelly and Susan

This is Lynn and Juliet. Lynn passed away in 2007, so I really treasure this photo and the memories of her friendship and support.

Here’s a familiar face! Michelle Mc (from our design team) and Sharon. I randomly drew a name from inside the Africa box and Sharon’s sister was the winner! (I think Sharon wrestled it from her though.)

Well that was a fun little stroll down memory lane, and all just to say, if you are interested you can view the robe on eBay by pasting in the item #120805898276

And if it's your turn to be Queen then bid on it! Ü

(If a beadie buddy wins the auction I have extra “queenly” goodies that I’ll tuck in for free!

Hugs,
Suzanne

In The Beginning

2011-11-04T14:58:00.000-07:00

In the beginning there were pens. Sparkly, captivating and unique beaded pens. I was in love and that is how Pennywise came to be. True story!

I could never really count how many pens I’ve made over the years. I tried. It went like this: An O’So Sticky Mega roll of tape (currently out of stock but hoping to make a come back!) made 240 pens. Wow! I’m sure that I went through at least 12 rolls if not more. Zowie! 240 x 12 = 2,880 beaded pens! WHOA! I think I am in awe of myself now! Ü

I know there are a lot of artists making beaded pens for gifts and many even to sell in craft boutiques and on the internet. Most of them get their micro beads from us because we have the best price and customer service there is! (Toot-toot!)

I love when customers share photos of what they make with our beads, it’s so amazing to see what other people think of and do with PWA micro beads. Julien LaBorde of Paisley Pens shared this brilliant photos with me and I quickly begged her to let me share them with you. Her designs are so vibrant!

Be sure to check out Julien’s Facebook page and “like” her to see more of her gorgeous pens!

Hugs, Suzanne

Thanksgiving Collage Sheets

2011-11-03T02:58:00.000-07:00

Today I give thanks for the opportunity to share our gorgeous Thanksgiving collage sheets!! Created by Michele Aiello-Zendejas of Swing Shift Designs, our collage sheets can be purchased digitally or as a high quality printed sheet.

Layer these images on cards for beautiful yet quick and easy holiday greetings! Which one do you like best? Ü

This one is my favorite!

Hugs, Suzanne

Are You Selling Beaded Crafts?

2011-11-02T02:56:00.000-07:00

Hey! Are you one of the many, many customers we love and cherish that make arts and crafts with our products to sell at holiday boutiques, craft fairs, shops, Facebook or other outlets?

If so, let me know! I’d love to help promote YOU here on our blog, in our electronic newsletters, and Facebook. We reach a huge audience and if I help you sell more stuff, you’ll buy more beads from me! Win-Win! Ü

Contact me via email or leave a comment below with your email address and let’s talk!

Hugs, Suzanne

The photo is of my door wreath – I didn’t make it so I’m not sure what the beaded vegetables are supposed to be but it’s sparkly and I love it! Ü

Talking Turkey

2011-11-01T03:51:00.000-07:00

My great aunt and uncle were once turkey farmers in Iowa, my dad’s home state. I never visited their farm but they had a family tradition of sending crystal turkey candy dishes as wedding gifts, so yep I have one! And whenever I think of turkey, I remember my family, the stories about their farm and of course my crystal turkey. Oh! And I also think about the turkey/Thanksgiving collage sheets we have for sale on the website too! ;0)

Jean Sunderman created these three deeply rich collage tag examples for us to share with you!

Materials:

Chipboard tags, Copper and Ultra fine clear beads, Thanksgiving Collage Sheets 1 & 2, O'So Sticky Tape Sheets and 1/4 tape, Various Fall color paints, Various flowers and ribbons, Rubber Stamps and Copper Embossing powder, Patterned Papers

Directions:

Paint tags in various fall colors. (Jean used brown and pumpkin orange) Cut out various Thanksgiving designs from collage sheets. Layer to card with patterned papers and flowers.

Orange Turkey Tag: Add patterned paper to tag. Distress with ink. Cut out turkey and cover with O'So Sticky Sheet. Trim and cover with ulta fine clear beads. Attach to tag. Add various flowers.

Orange Lace Tag: Boy with Turkey Collage Sheet was covered with O'So Sticky Sheet and covered with Ulta Fine Clear Beads. Add Brown Sequined lace with flower made from coffee filter. (love the texture that adds!) Brown Tag: background was stamped with leaf design and embossed with copper embossing powder. Cut out turkey collage sheet and edge with 1/4 O'So sticky tape. Add copper beads.

Jean, your work is stunning as ever! I’m so glad that you sought us out “way back when”. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed you and your artwork! Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

Beware! Brad Pendants Are Highly Addictive!

2011-10-22T00:50:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up my family played a lot of board games. One of my favorites was “Can’t Stop” from Parker Brothers. It’s a game of risk, chance and mostly… self control. I lacked much of the latter which is why I think it best that I don’t go to casinos. Ü

Creating the pendants from altered brads has had the same effect on me as that board game from long ago. I just Can’t Stop! I’ve decided that less is more when it comes to the Glossy Accents. Originally I had envisioned a nice thick bubble of clear dried GA over the top. But the thicker it gets the less I like the way it looks so I am shifting my vision to something different and it’s working better for me. This pendant has a beautiful piece of paper from a Papaya card for the background with a thin layer of GA over the top. Then I laid the gems on top and let it dry overnight.

Walking away and leaving them overnight seems to be what I need to do. Otherwise I find a way to bump it, mess it up, tip it over or drop something on it. What a goober! I didn’t add micro beads to the one above because the background is already pretty busy.

These next two are my new favorites!

Both also have background paper from punched up Papaya greeting cards. The one on the left has gems and a colorful mixture of micro beads (I made sure that there weren’t any fuchsia ones after the previous problem with color bleeding.) The one on the right has a charm that I got from Michael’s Craft store.

I’m trying to pace myself since I only have a total of 12 brads to play with until my order gets here! My table has a lovely assortment of papers and embellishments just waiting!

Until next time, Suzanne

Brads Into Pendants Take Two

2011-10-20T04:32:00.000-07:00

My 4th attempt at making a pretty pendant from a big brad definitely showed improvement! (If you missed trials 1 – 3 look at yesterdays post). I’m using the back side of the brad as a bezel for holding my decorative paper, beads and embellishments. I covered the paper with a thick coating of Glossy Accents and then waited about 45 minutes. Then I added the decorative brad to the middle and a mixture of micro beads all around. The fuchsia beads are bleeding in the glue, I’m not sure why. I’m not going to use them anymore even though I really love the color.

Trial #5 was done leaving the paper out of the bezel for the Glossy Accents and beading process. It’s a much thinner coat of gloss than I was getting with the paper inside but the trade off is that the color of the image is pretty true. I will tack this into a bezel.

And my 6th attempt is really my favorite so far:

This image has just a light brushing (as in with a paint brush) of Glossy Accents over the top. I placed the micro beads and the topaz gem and let them dry in place. Then I went back over the image and the micro beads with another brushing of Glossy Accents to seal them. The thinning covering is starting to grow on me. I originally imagined filling the bezel to the top with a clear drying glue so for awhile this one felt like a failure. Then I changed my perspective and now it’s my favorite.

I think I will try using a two part acrylic pourable medium on my next attempts, just to see if they will dry clear even when applied thickly over the images.

Hugs, Suzanne

P.S. Most of the backgrounds I used are from greeting cards made by Papaya. I love the colorful images and had a lot of fun going through my cards and selecting what to “punch” from them! The papers are 1” in diameter, so the 32mm brads leave a nice border around the edges as a frame.

Brads into Pendants Take One

2011-10-19T04:27:00.000-07:00

When I posted to the Pennywise Yahoo group that I was too cheap to pay $4 for a single bezel I got lots of great input, ideas and links! Debbie Warren shared this photo of how she turned big brads into bezels by breaking off one leg and curling the other: This was something I definitely had to try myself! Finding the big 32mm brads turned out to be a bit tricky, they seemed to be sold out everywhere I turned, even JoAnn’s and Michaels craft stores. I was finally able to locate some online $3 for a box of 12 – a price I can really sink my budget into!

The brads I liked are from Karen Foster Design and are called Big Time Brads, Antique Metal.

I was able to find the brads in smaller sizes but I really liked that the big time brads matched a circle punch I have! Ü

Making the bezel was super easy. The metal is soft and easy to manipulate into a curl with a pair of round jewelry pliers. The important thing is not to bend it all the way at the base but rather curl it into place. Stressing the metal at the base caused my first attempt to break off. The extra leg broke off easily and I sanded the rough edge it left with a sanding block.

The rest of this article is really a diary of trial and error and trying again and again. I’ll admit up front that I still haven’t found the “perfect” process for me, but I think I am getting close!

This was my first attempt followed by all the things I learned and was puzzled by:

I punched a circle with the “keys” from some old K & Company papers that I have. I tacked the image into the bottom of my brad/bezel and put Diamond Glaze over the whole thing. I set a smaller decorative brad into the goo (on the left side) and sprinkled a colorful mixture of micro beads on top. I struggled with air bubbles and their determination to not be popped. The decorative brad sunk, the color on the fuchsia micro beads bled and the Diamond Glaze dried with a muddy yellow hue and a sunken dip in the middle. I filled the dip two times, evidenced by the light lines you can see on the right side of the pendant.

The paper in the background shows the original coloring that the paper had before being coated. I wonder if my Diamond Glaze is just old.

Trial #2

Basically I did the same process as before. The fuchsia micro beads bled again and as the pendant dried the beads that were all nicely scattered about pulled together into groups. Weird. The Diamond Glaze is still yellowish so I moved to using Glossy Accents.

Trial #3

This time I put some gems on the paper before I put the goo in. Don’t do that. While I was sleeping the glue just lifted the gems up and they floated wherever they wanted until drying NOT where I put them. The Glossy Accents definitely finished more clear and didn’t discolor my background image as much (compare in photo above). It’s quite possible that my Diamond Glaze is over 5 years old, so I’m not going to rule it out as a future possibility in case age has something to do with the discoloration.

Note to self: The fuchsia beads bled again. Apparently there is something different about that coating because none of the other colors bled. So stop putting them into these pendants!

More things to make you go “hmmmmmmmmmm” on this subject tomorrow!

Hugs, Suzanne

Even Disney Micro Beads!

2011-10-18T15:00:00.001-07:00

Look at this fabulous shirt that my friend Anna was wearing the other day! Imagine my excitement when I looked at it closely and realized that the design was drawn on the shirt in black micro beads!

It appears that the adhesive is possibly an iron on (I can’t imagine anyone hand drawing them in glue for all of the Disney gift shops!) But it sure has a hand drawn look to it.

The silver reflections are where some beads have come off over the years of wearing and washing the shirt.

This really got me thinking of things I could draw on shirts with fabric glue and micro beads for Christmas gifts this year!

Hugs, Suzanne

Beaded Lace For Fall

2011-10-16T05:05:00.000-07:00

Autumn colors are definitely my favorite color palette and Jean Sunderman’s beaded lace card is full of rich color, depth and texture. I love her handmade flowers made from coffee filters! Anytime I can dual purpose materials from my kitchen to my craft room I’m happy! So creative!

Materials:

Orange and Copper micro beads

Brown, Orange, Purple and White Cardstock

Patterned Paper

O'So Sticky Tape and Extra Liners

Any Border Punch

Chipboard Bird sprayed with Glitter Mist

Flower (Jean’s are made with coffee filters and Glitter Mist)

Sequined Cord

Directions:

Cut Brown cardstock to 4 1/4 x 5 1/2. Cut Orange and purple cardstocks slightly smaller. Layer together with patterned paper to create the base of the card front as shown.

Cut a one inch strip of orange cardstock. Layer with O'So Sticky tape. Peel off top liner of tape. Use a punch with an extra O'So Sticky tape liner to create a design strip. Make sure shiny, waxy side is down and layer punched strip onto the O'So Sticky tape. First use orange beads to cover background of design strip. Next, peel off the punched liner and add copper beads. Attach beaded strip to the card front along with flower , sequined cord and bird.

Take Note

2011-10-12T19:44:00.001-07:00

Marianne Colschen is the queen of dress it up! When it comes to finding inexpensive items and transforming them into darling “handmade-ish” gifts Marianne certainly has a talent fine tuned to the art.

Here she has covered a small notebook with decorative paper and a micro beaded front plate. The pens and pencils have all had small bit of matching paper and micro beads added to them to pull it all together into a very nice ensemble.

Are you thinking “teacher gifts”? How cute would that be??

Hugs, Suzanne

Hanging Collage ATC Holder

2011-10-10T22:44:00.001-07:00

Jennifer Toussaint created a pretty way to hold and display her favorite collectible ATC cards using lots of fun items she found in her craft room!

Supplies: Assorted ribbons, Mono Adhesive, Crystal effects, White acrylic paint, fancy brad, Modge Podge, Assorted scrapping paper, Pennywise Arts Collage sheet, Lettuce, gold and clear micro beads and a cute wooden box from a dollar store.

Directions: Cut around each collage picture so there is no extra white space, set aside. Paint wooden box 3 coats of white acrylic paint let dry thoroughly. Using Modge Podge, apply the collage images randomly over the outside and back of the box. Let dry. Cut scrapping paper to fit the inside dimensions of the box and apply with adhesive. Attach flowers with brad to the center. Using Crystal Effects make a line of glue all around the top edge of the box, apply mixture of gold, lettuce and clear micro beads. Allow to dry. Using Mono Adhesive apply blue ribbon to the middle of each picket on the box. String through each hanging hole with pink ribbon and tie securely.

So very pretty Jennifer!

To find Jennifer on the web go to her blog!http://craftychickfrommaine.blogspot.com/

Hugs, Suzanne

Halloween Skulls

2011-09-30T17:53:00.000-07:00

Next up from Christine Grabb is a Halloween skulls card.

Christine explains, “I clear embossed the Boo on crumpled patterned paper and dp'd some red ink over it. I love the effect!
The skulls are grungeboard that I covered with white acrylic paint. After they dried (okay, okay - after they were dryish), I covered them in Versamark and did two layers of clear embossing powder - UTEE would be perfect here, I just can't remember where I put mine - and while the ep was still hot and sticky, dipped them in Ultra Fine Clear Beads. I added an additional three layers of ep and beads, heating between each layer and ending with a final layer of ep. Ta-dah!”

She continues, “After they cooled, I cracked them a bit - I tried to rub them with a dye ink pad but it wouldn't stick - duh! Black Stazon would have been a better choice, but it's apparently run off with my UTEE and they're living in sin. :) I think I'm going to try this little trick with some colored micro beads and maybe some other shapes - I want to see this technique on a heart or flower shape. I would be tickled pink if anyone decided to try it and left a link for me!”

If you like Christine’s style be sure to follow her blog!

http://gotasunsetinmyveins.blogspot.com/

How many more days til Halloween?

Hugs, Suzanne

Trick Or Treat

2011-09-17T17:47:00.001-07:00

It’s PWA tradition that our design team member Christine Grabb gets first dibs on Halloween, her most favorite holiday of the year. Christine’s creative ideas and “beadniques” are something that I always love to see! If you like her style be sure to follow Christine on her personal blog: http://gotasunsetinmyveins.blogspot.com/

Chriss tells us how she made this card below:

“I took some double-sided paper and made the base card, then I flipped the paper over and made a paper 'ribbon' from the print on the back side (yay! bats!); I couldn't get the tail right, so I ended up using the corner of a medallion shaped die.
Papertrey Ink stamps and die helped make the tickets out of more patterned paper and I added a some hand-dyed seam binding. To finish it all off, I took a small square of O'So Sticky tape, removed the rubber liner and adhered it to some black paper, which I then punched with a bat.”

“I removed the paper liner and dipped it into Clear Mini Beads. You could use the Black Opaque beads too, if you wanted a little less sparkle but I like a little bit of bling. Stick it on with some foam tape and you're done! Thanks for looking and stay tuned for more Halloween goodies!!”

Hugs! Suzanne

Win a FREE 10 pack of O'So Sticky Tape!!!

2011-08-28T14:25:00.001-07:00

We are SO excited that O'So is making a come back!! Help us get the word out!

Be the one to get the MOST new people to "like" Pennywise Arts on Facebook and it's YOURS!

Here's what to do:

1. Have your friends "like" us on Facebook - if you haven't done it yet you should "like" us too! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pennywise-Arts/142996769012

2. Ask them to post YOUR full name in the comment box so we know who referred them.

The Contest is open until the O'So arrives in about 2 weeks!

You can still place your pre-order on our website www.PennywiseArts.Com for the "retro pricing" up until the shipment arrives!

Let the all in good fun competition begin!

Hugs!

Suzanne

Pennywise Arts, where your favorite color can be clear!
www.PennywiseArts.com

Still Ticking

2011-08-22T00:35:00.000-07:00

One of the fat book page swaps we did on the PWA Yahoo Group last year was a “Time” theme. This stunning page by Eunice Creswell is totally “Tim” (Tim Holtz inspired).

The list of supplies she used is just as detailed as her art. She used the Cuttlebug folder “Clockworks” on textured cardstock for her background and distressed it with several Distress Ink colors. The letter “T” is cut from corrugated cardboard and some of the outer layer has been stripped. The finishing touches on the “T” are Distress inks and Distress Stickles. The rest of the letters are die cut chipboard distressed and stamped with various textures. The dot of the “i” is a sunflower with a mixture of micro beads in the middle. (All translucent: brown, orange, yellow, red, lettuce and yellow with black and gold opaque's.)

The small distressed tags contain her credits pinned onto the page with assorted fibers and charms completing her page.

Our Yahoo Group has changed over the years from a daily average of 200+ messages (whew!) to an average of less than 20 a week. What I find really cool though, is that our activity level in swaps hasn’t changed all that much – which means we are spending less time talking about creating but not less time doing the creating! Yay us!

If you like to swap quality art, then our Yahoo Group might be the place for you, come check us out!

Hugs! Suzanne

O’So Sticky Tape Makes A Comeback!

2011-08-19T15:20:00.001-07:00

Good NEWS! Due to the overwhelming request to get O’So back in stock we are organizing a power buy opportunity! This means if you love O’So Sticky Tape, you can help us get it back in stock by placing a pre-order NOW!!

Here’s the deal: Our entire O'So Sticky Tape line is obtained in four different shipments each costing about $1,000. (Ouch!!)

Pennywise is a cash business, we just can’t purchase products on credit in this uncertain economy. This is why we need your help to get O'So back!

We are starting with one order for the REGULAR TAPE SHEETS since that has the highest demand. The prices on all PREPAID PREORDERS will stay the same as before: 2 packs are $4.12 and 10 packs are $16.94. Once the tape arrives the price will increase due to the increased costs to us from the manufacturer.

We plan to place the order at the end of August and have the tape back in stock and shipping by mid September. This is a no risk opportunity, you’ll be investing in a “sure thing” with us!

Please show your support and help us get O’So back by placing your preorder on our website: http://www.pennywisearts.com/tape.shtml

Once we get this order complete we will rally again to bring in all of the different sized rolls. We’ll need lots of help to make that happen!

Thanks to all those who helped get this campaign off the ground! Your support and encouragement made all the difference!

Hugs!
Suzanne

ATC Corsages

2011-08-13T23:30:00.000-07:00

Oh dear me! I just found some photos on my computer that the virus had hidden and I see clearly now that I missed many of Eunice Creswell’s bead-iful creations from May! Yikes! Not to be overwhelmed into inertia, I will plow onward!

These three fun ATC corsages come complete with their own specialty pins with seed bead embellishments and micro beaded heads on them. Such a fun little accent that really adds a lot to these tradable cards! Eunice, you are so clever!

Floral Lattice

2011-08-10T23:02:00.000-07:00

I’m still in process with my craft room. Cleaning, sorting, clearing, organizing and discovering. The latter is the best part of all, finding treasures!!

I can’t remember if this beauty by Marianne Colschen has been on the blog before or not, but it turned up and I wanted to err on the side of you definitely getting to see it!

O’so faintly you can see the embossed diagonals on the white cardstock. Marianne used them as a guide to lay down Sure Tac glue to create the micro beaded lattice upon which her pretty flowers bloom.

I definitely need more space just to display all of the goodies I’ve collected over the years!

FUNky Flower Tin

2011-08-08T22:51:00.001-07:00

Getting sick is never fun, and when it’s an illness that lasts longer than just a few days then all fun goes right out the window. That’s kind of what happened when I got that virus in June. Don’t worry, I’m not sick but my computer sure has been. We thought it was going to be terminal, thankfully it wasn’t.

Unfortunately though, it left a nasty trail of chaos behind. Would you believe that the virus actually took and HID almost everything on my computer!?!! Programs, pictures, documents,…. EVERYTHING! So piece by piece I’m putting my computer life back together and trying to get my mojo back. It’s taking longer than I would like it to.

I’ll be squeezing in blog posts as often as I can and mixing it up a bit so that all three of our summer artists will get fair screen time. Thanks so much Jennifer, Yvonne and Marianne for your understanding!!

This fun”ky” tin was created by Jennifer Toussaint. The bright colors always sell me and this cute little tin is so whimsical. The clear micro beads always make photography a challenge so in case you can’t read the stamped image on the top it says, “He was away often. I like that in a man.” Kind of reminds me of those sassy 50’s women you see on calendars and napkins now. Ü

Jennifer took her tin the extra mile and spruced up the inside as well:

Just darling!!

Swimming Acetate Shaker

2011-07-22T16:12:00.001-07:00

I do so wish you could hold this shaker card in your own hot little hands! Rolling it back and forth is mesmerizing!

My friend and a PWA Beady Bud, Laura Davis had a brilliant idea to ink two pieces of acetate with alcohol inks (Stream and Bottle, I think). Then she stamped fish on one sheet with Staz On black ink. PWA 1/8” foam tape strips were used to create the shaker box. Inside, Laura put in a variety of colors and sizes of beads… Bigger Beads in Teal Opaque, Regular size in Royal Blue, Light Teal and some Ultra Fine Clear. What a wonderful mix of beads to complement this under the sea theme! Last but not least, Laura put silver foil tape around the edges to hide the foam and to frame the card. Since the back is made of acetate too, it’s completely see through and so well done!!

Oh! And guess what!??! You CAN hold one of these in your hot little hands! Laura gave me TWO of them! Ü Leave a comment here and make sure to sign your name so if you win I can find you!

Hugs, Suzanne

Butterflight

2011-07-20T03:28:00.000-07:00

I received this multi layered luscious butterfly card last fall from artist Carole Miller.

“Blinged” to the hilt with swirls, shimmer, glitz and micro beads this is a wonderful example of using PWA beads to fill in the gaps of an intricately die cut shape.

Carole added O’So Sticky Tape to the back of the wings letting the sticky show through the outline. When dipped into micro beads the area fills in nicely and adds another layer of dimension to the butterfly.

This creation is a jaw dropping wow in person, come on by and see it up close! ;0)

Hugs, Suzanne

Springtime Tins Better Late Than Never, Right?

2011-07-18T21:55:00.001-07:00

Is it July? For reals? It sure feels more like springtime here in the Pacific Northwest. We’ve only had a few peeks at the sunshine in the last couple of months and our vitamin D levels are waning.

My deeeeeeeepest apologies to my dear friend and designer Eunice Creswell for the very, very belated posting of her simply gorgeous springtime tins. Life happenings coupled with a computer virus sorta knocked me off my game for a bit.

I posted this in the largest size photo that I could because I want you to get a good look at the details! If you click on the picture it should get even bigger! Eunice’s punches were clearly happy to be out to play for these because they showed up in a big, big way. The patience and coordination needed to work with such teeny pieces is admirable. Of that patience, I am seriously lacking so I extra appreciate it when I see it done well.

The green tin has several layers. Green grass and a white picket fence are the anchors. Little white bunnies and colorful micro beaded butterflies frolic in the foreground. Sweetness is what this tin is, pure sweetness.

The blue tin is a virtual tulip garden with tulips and butterflies making the rounds. The entire rounds. Ü Eunice added texture to the striped ribbon with a strip of O’So Sticky tape and clear micro beads.

The pink tin is sporting intricately punched white lace with ribbon threaded through. The butterfly really takes the stage though with it’s delicate wings and rose micro beads.

Eunice’s artwork is always a treat to see. Her hyper attention to details and finishing touches are what make her so unique.

Glass Sculpture

2011-06-27T03:05:00.000-07:00

This fun project has been two years in the making, really! A couple of years ago I was craft show hopping with some friends when we spotted a beautiful cobalt blue glass sculpture displayed as a yard ornament.

As we discovered that it was all created from various glass items such as a wine bottle, vase, plate, marbles, etc. we all ooh’ed and aaahhh’ed even more. Surely we could do that!

The best part was that when I wasn’t looking those silly girls bought it for me for my birthday. I love them so much!

From that day forward we all started collecting interesting pieces of glass to use in our own sculptures some day. After several false starts, that “some day” came several weeks ago when we all met together with ALL of our collective glass pieces and the sculpting began!

The sculpture shown above was a collaborative effort but I think Julie Imsland and Yvonne Grimes were the key contributors to the design.

The glass is “glued” together with 100% silicone applied liberally. For items left outside it’s important to seal everything tightly so that water won’t get inside. (If it does, yucky things grow.) Because I still have very little hand strength I purchased a Black and Decker power caulking tool for about $35. It worked out wonderfully!

Inside the vase I put some teal and clear micro beads. Above you can see them still layered. At that point in the photo shoot I hadn’t decided for sure if I was going to mix them up or not but then I went for it! And I’m so glad I did! This little sculpture stands about 14 inches high and is just too sweet and delicate to decorate the outside. I’m keeping it inside where I see it every day and where it won’t have to weather the elements!

Included in my sculpture is a glass bird, a vase, a small plate, a bubble vase, a votive holder, white pebble marbles, a weird flat vase (like the kind my grandma floats rose blossoms in) and a heavy plate with scalloped edges and glass feet. Someone thought it could be Fostoria – don’t tell grandma that I glued that! ;0)

I really wanted to show you the inspirational cobalt blue piece but the virus on my computer won’t let me have the picture. :0(

Hugs, Suzanne

Red, White and Blue SALE!!

2011-06-19T18:21:00.000-07:00

While my computer has been offline (ugh virus!) I've been busy cleaning! Cleaning out closets, cupboards and my craft room! Things are starting to feel lighter and less overwhelming and that is a good thing!

In fact, I even carried it over to the Pennywise web "home" and cleaned up quite a bit there too... http://www.pennywisearts.com/index.shtml

Brian helped me combine some of the web pages and we deleted several of the ones that just cluttered up the menu bar so now the home page feels lighter and updated too. What a great feeling!

To celebrate we decided to bring in some fun new products to jazz things up a bit! NEW colors and NEW sizes of beads! And NEW Shake It window pouches for making another fun variety of shaker cards! You gotta see them! http://www.pennywisearts.com/beadables.shtml Be sure to scroll down and see the fun SAMPLES that some of our designers created with them!

Be sure to let me know what you think of the new look and the new stuff!

Since my most favorite holiday of the year is approaching I'm going to have a Red, White and Blue sale!

Shop on the website between now and July 4th and add at least one red, one white and one blue bag of beads to your cart and you will automagically get a FREE bag of Mini Micro Beads in your order! That's a value of $5.25 and FREE! Cool beads!

It doesn't matter if you choose them in opaque or transluscent, there just needs to be one of each color in your cart. If you order two of each color, you'll get two bags of free beads. You might want to go in on an order with a nearby friend and share the shipping cost.

Hugs, Suzanne
http://www.pennywisearts.com/index.shtml

Berries Fresh From The Garden

2011-06-07T14:54:00.001-07:00

This special project was hand picked by designer Michelle McCarthy. It might look like a simple crate but just you wait!

Inside is a fun berry surprise!

The sides of the box fold down and are embellished with stamped scenes and quotes as well as tags, micro beads, ribbon, fiber and brads. In the middle of the box is another little box that holds the handmade strawberry boxes.

The micro bead exteriors make the berries look morning fresh picked with a bit of dew still on them. Yum!

A Trio Of Paper Jewels To Wear

2011-05-27T02:30:00.000-07:00

Stephanie Loomis’s embellishment of her paper flowers really makes her jewelry unique. She uses glass beads, chain, micro beads, wire and charms to complete each piece. Her three piece set of burgundy and orange is quite amazing.

My photography however is not quite so amazing. It really made me sad today when I couldn’t get a picture that truly captured the beauty of this trio. I’ll keep working at it. Even though photography isn’t my forte it is a necessary skill for blogging and sharing!

Here is a closer look at the necklace:

And a close up of the coordinating lapel pin:

Thanks for sharing with us Stephanie!

And now we want to share the love with our readers! If you would like a chance to win one of Stephanie’s necklaces just send me an email that says “Stephanie’s Jewelry Rocks!” My email address is suzanne@pennywisearts.com

The random drawing will take place next week!

Hugs, Suzanne

P.S. If you’re just joining us be sure to look at the last several posts to see how Stephanie made these!

Foam Flower Wearables

2011-05-26T03:44:00.000-07:00

Stephanie also created a pretty necklace with fun foam. This one was inspired by the paper flower idea she got in a magazine.

How To Make The Foam Flowers

Supplies: fun foam, die cut machine (Sizzix), black ink (Staz-On by Tsukineko), rubber stamp (sentiment or small pattern. Mine is The Angel Company), white glue, microbeads, mulberry paper

Directions:

1. Cut flowers from foam.

2. Stamp on flowers.

3. Discard flower centers

4. Cut a base for the back side of the flower. (I used a rounded rectangle)

5. Tear mulberry paper into leaf shapes.

6. Glue leaves onto base.

7. Glue flower on top of leaves.

8. Fill flower center with white glue.

9. Add micro beads.

10. Let dry.

From there the directions are the same as the paper necklace (see previous post)

Necklace:

Decide how the flowers will be clustered.
Glue them to a base of felt or foam.
When dry, trim the base so it doesn't show.
Use a paper piercer to create holes in the base to add jump-rings, wire, and/or ribbon.
Embellish as desired....

Stephanie also created a matching hair clip to complete this fun fashionable artwear.

Just wait until you see the NEXT set Stephanie created,….. oh my WOW!

Hugs, Suzanne

A Hairclip To Match

2011-05-25T13:50:00.001-07:00

As I pulled all of Stephanie’s jewelry pieces out to photograph them I discovered this cute little floral hairclip, it matches the necklace I just posted. In handling each piece over and over to get reasonable good pictures I realized just how durable these flowers are! Don’t let the idea of paper jewelry scare you off – these guys will definitely last a long time!

Hugs, Suzanne

Handmade Paper Jewelry

2011-05-25T13:21:00.001-07:00

Our featured designer for the month of April was Stephanie Loomis. With all the retreat hoopla I forgot to schedule her projects on the blog. So sorry Steph!

Stephanie is a Southern Belle and makes her home in Georgia. Stephanie has been around the PWA community for almost as long as I have! She’s visited us here in the Seattle area for a retreat and I’ve have the adventure of visiting her and attending a retreat in Georgia. Fun stuff!

Steph calls herself and accidental artist. I’ll let her explain.

“I call myself an Accidental Artist because I came to art by a circuitous route--via literature, theater, photography, music, education, and rubber stamping. Now I fully embrace mixed media and altered arts as my expression and my therapy. I teach secondary school literature and composition two days a week which leaves me studio time. I frequently incorporate art elements into my literature classes to teach symbolism, point-of-view, and anywhere else I can combine literature and art. I've been married since 1987 and have three daughters born 1990, 1993, and 1996. God is good--all the time. That's the motto of my moments and the inspiration of my life.”

For her first project of 2011 Stephanie says, “I was inspired by the March/April edition of Cloth, Paper, Scissors. There was an article there about making paper flower jewelry. I tweaked it to meet my skills.”

This is one of the gorgeous paper jewelry pieces that Stephanie submitted for her assignment.

There is a close up picture at the end of the tutorial where you can really see and appreciate her attention to detail.

How To Make The Paper Flowers

Supplies:

White Glue, old paper (newspaper, old books, whatever), fun foam (or felt, which is what the magazine used. I happened to have to foam on hand.), acrylic paint, water, alcohol ink spritzer (Shimmerz by Tsukineko; Walnut ink by Tsukineko; Glimmer Mist by Tattered Angels), micro beads from Pennywise Arts

Directions:

1. Paint papers with watered-down acrylic paints. Be messy.

2. When paint is dry, Spray with alcohol ink spray.

3. Tear paper into strips about 1" wide.

4. Tear strips into pieces 1/2" - 1" long. (The magazine recommended a barrel shape, but that was too hard for me to do consistently.)

5. Twist each piece at one end and fan out the other end. This is a single petal.

6. Cut or punch a circle from the foam.

7. Assemble the flower by gluing one petal at a time, beginning with the outside of the foam circle and working inward in layers.

8. Let dry. (Showing another color combo)

9. Apply glue to the petal edges with a toothpick.

10. Dip in micro beads.

11. Let dry.

How To Make The Necklace:

Decide how the flowers will be clustered.
Glue them to a base of felt or foam.
When dry, trim the base so it doesn't show.
Use a paper piercer to create holes in the base to add jump-rings, wire, and/or ribbon.
Embellish as desired....

Here is a up close shot of Stephanie’s beautiful and beadiful necklace!

Remember you can click any photo on the blog to see an even larger version!

Well done in an amazing way Steph! And there’s more to come!

To see more about Stephanie and her art, photography and life all mixed together visit her blog:

http://mrsl-dramateach.blogspot.com/

Hugs, Suzanne

3-D Zots

2011-05-22T14:00:00.001-07:00

When I was at the stamp show in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho last month I took a class from Mary Jo McGraw and she used a new to me “beadnique”. Imagine that! So simple too! Got 3-D Zots? Julie Imsland does! I borrowed hers to show you what the box looks like.

All you need to do to be successful with this technique is stick the Zots on something,( in this case I used flowers) and put the sticky dot in the centers. Once in place just smush micro beads into the Zot and tap off the excess, viola!

Both of the flowers above were done using stamps from Outlines.

This next example was made using the Tim Holtz Tattered Floral die cut with fabric and the plastic packaging that the die came in. Following the tutorial from Laura Denison’s Following the Paper Trail YouTube video I glued the fabric to the plastic and let the glue dry. Then I heated the plastic until it was soft enough to mold. A 3-D Zot in the center finishes it off quite nicely. Besides the obviously cool design look, I love that they resemble those old time jelly candies with the little crunchy colored dots on the outside that my grandma used to keep in her candy jar. Does anyone know what they were called?

Another fun thing about the Zots is that they stay gooey underneath so you can poke them and they squish a little. It’s a tactile thing, I just can’t help myself. Ü

Hugs, Suzanne

Cowgirl Chunky ATC

2011-05-16T17:54:00.001-07:00

The Pennywise Arts annual retreats are always a “shoebox party” which means everyone that attends brings the components of a specific project to share and we all move around the room making each project over the course of the weekend. It’s really a great way to get to try new products and techniques!

This year I decided to share my first chunky atc! I really like the chunky aspect because it opens so many doors for embellishing. I also like that it’s something that can stand alone on display rather than get tucked into a collection binder.

I apologize in advance because I’m going to be teasing you just a little by sharing this project. A couple of the items are brand new and not even on our website yet.

The focus on my chunky atc is the shaker box window filled with a mix of micro beads. The window is a clear plastic bubble that comes with a strip of adhesive on the edges. We just got in a case of many different shapes and sizes of windows and this was my first sample using one. Several members of our design team are hard at work making samples with them so we’ll have more to share soon.

Inside the window is an image from a new collage sheet created by Michele Aiello-Zendejas of Swing Shift Designs. I love these sheets and look forward to sharing the western collection with you soon!

Since it’s a perfect fit for the Cowboys and Cowgirls challenge on Gingersnap, I’m sharing this project with the gals over there! Gingersnap Creations Chestnut Theme Challenge - Cowboys and Cowgirls Check it out for lots of fun wild west inspiration! (I even recognize an artist or two there as PWA Beadie Buddies! Ü)

Hugs, Sheriff Suzanne

PWA Retreat Recap

2011-05-16T14:34:00.001-07:00

It’s hard to believe that another retreat has come and gone. This was our 8th event celebrating our 8th year in the bead biz. Wow!

Twenty-two ladies converged on The Big House Lodge in

Cle Elum, WA where the accommodations were just perfect for our crafty gang. Everyone loved the sleeping wing that was secluded and quiet. Chowtime was fun! We had a mess hall that could seat us all together separate from the rest of the house. Having the meals catered was new for us and we definitely plan to do that again! Jorge and Vicki Chow really did a nice job and we were all well fed. Thank you!!

Then there was the great room which we decked out for a weekend of shoebox projects and kept open 24 hours a day. morning!

What girls only event would be complete without a SHOPPING trip? Even a tiny town like Cle Elum has it’s own rubberstamp and scrapbook store! Ruby of Ruby’s spoiled us all rotten with

yummy treats, a store discount, goodie bags AND a very generous gift basket donated to our event and awarded to Kris D.! If you’re ever in Cle Elum, WA Ruby’s is a must stop store!

Entertainment seems to happen spontaneously with this group of gals and the echoes of laughter rang throughout the house all weekend long.

Great food, great fun and great projects made for an amazing and memorable weekend! Thanks to all who came to spend the weekend with me!!

Hope to see ya’ll next time!

Hugs, Suzanne

Will Spring Ever Get Here?

2011-04-28T20:32:00.001-07:00

I keep waiting for spring to show up to share this beautiful daisy box from PWA designer Michelle McCarthy. Now I think maybe Spring is just waiting for me to share it so it can show up!

I’ll let Michelle tell you about it in her own words.

“Here's a simple box I put together using a mix of Green, Black and Gold micro beads and the new Iridescent Bubble Beads.”

I started with a dollar store find of two boxes with two drawers each and glued them together to form the four drawer box. After adding the varied papers and a tiny bit of stamping, I edged all the side edges of the box with the mix of beads. For the drawer faces, I just glued ribbon down on paper and then cut to size of the drawer front. Bubble beads for the centers of the daisies were tacked down with Crystal Effects. I added a couple silk daisies and a ribbon and called it good.

Michelle, I should say “good” is better than good here! Thanks for the great contribution this month!

Belated Blogger

2011-04-19T20:35:00.001-07:00

Poor Stephanie got hopped right out of our blog hop when Blogger wouldn't let her upload her project over the weekend.

I'm just adding the link here for you to give Steph a visit!

http://mrsl-dramateach.blogspot.com/2011/04/pwa-blog-hop.html

You are going to love the incredible jewelry that she has been creating!!

We'll be featuring more of it on the PWA blog real soon!

Hugs!
Suzanne
Pennywise Arts, where your favorite color can be clear! www.PennywiseArts.Com

Yay! It’s PWA Blog Hop Day!

2011-04-15T14:00:00.000-07:00

I love blog hops! The energy that swirls around this annual event is incredible! I have to admit that the response really took me by surprise last year – in a huge and wonderful way!

This weekend you’ll have the opportunity to hippety-hop through some amazing creativity. The artists have all worked hard to bring you their best and some are even awarding it as blog candy. COOL BEANS!

WIN!

I’ll be cruising through the blogs each day and selecting at least one winner per day from the comments to receive an extra special handmade gift from one of our designers. If you want to win here’s a tip – leave a comment that is thoughtful and personal in some way. ;0)

But wait there’s more!

In ADDITION to the prize drawings EVERY SINGLE order placed on the PWA website over the weekend (Saturday and Sunday) will receive a piece of FREE blog candy created by one of our design team members! WOWEE!! Just look through our archives to see what you might receive! Ü

Let’s kick this thing off!

PWA designer Jean Sunderman brings some western influenced artwork to the party in honor of the Pennywise Arts annual crafting retreat that is taking place the end of this month in Cle Elum, Washington.

Jean’s first card has a handsome fellow on the cover with three silver micro beaded stars for embellishment. Inside the card says “Save a horse, ride a cowboy” oh my! ;0)

I love Jean’s atc “I always get my man”. It’s a sweet little shaker card that used one of the free PWA templates:

Also from our shaker card files, Jean’s finale is a sassy lassie who’s good with a rope!

Thanks for stopping by Pardner! Now it’s time to mosey on over to my friend Jennifer’s blog. She’s bursting with creativity and so excited to share with ya’ll! I heard tell she may be giving away some goodies too! Ü

Oh, and Yey! If you’re interested in joining up with a fun group of wild women at the PWA retreat there are still a few spots left and we’d love to have ya!

It’s Coming!! PWA Blog Hop 2011!!

2011-04-12T12:28:00.001-07:00

I am really excited about our 2011 blog hop lineup! There are so many talented artists in our midst and I love showing off their fabulous creations – especially the ones that have micro beads on them! Ü

The hop starts THIS Saturday and there will be gobs of prizes and random drawings (aka blog candy) along the trail – some from me and some from the participating bloggers – O’so much FUN!!

In ADDITION to the daily prize drawings EVERY SINGLE order placed on the PWA website over the weekend (Saturday and Sunday) will receive a piece of blog candy created by one of our design team members! WOWEE!! Just look back through our archives to see what possibilities could land in YOUR mailbox!!

See you Saturday!!

Hugs, Suzanne

Did Someone Say Chocolate Bunnies?

2011-04-08T02:07:00.000-07:00

Julie Imsland is so good about revisiting the Pennywise Arts website and looking for forgotten or undiscovered gems to pull out and now she’s done it again!

Julie found our free to download shaker tag template to create this really fun bunny tag. Note to self: there are lots of free downloadable fun things to discover on the PWA website!

Supplies:

Pennywise Arts Shaker Tag Template

1/8" O'So Sticky Tape

1/8" Foam Tape Strips

Acetate

Cloud Pattern Paper

Bunnies and Caption Stamp by Studio G

Brown and Green Pigment Ink

Grass Stamp

Clear Embossing Powder

Green Embossing Powder

Green Opaque Micro Beads

Instructions:

Print out the tag template onto back of patterned paper (or print out template and trace shape onto back of patterned paper).

Cut out tag along solid lines and punch holes as marked on template.

Cut a scrap of patterned paper 2.5" x 2" for the scene. Stamp bunnies in brown pigment ink & heat emboss with clear embossing powder. Sponge green pigment ink below stamped bunnies, and stamp grass with same ink along bunny feet. Heat emboss with green embossing powder.

Ink first line of saying with brown pigment ink, stamp on tag front above opening & heat emboss with clear embossing powder. Ink second line of saying and continue in same manner below the tag front opening.

Assemble the shaker following the instructions for Super Simple Shaker Cards. (Using the 1/8" foam tape & green opaque micro beads.)

Chocolate Sings

2011-04-02T02:09:00.000-07:00

Our Cuttlebug Queen is at it again! PWA designer Julie Imsland uses her Cuttlebug more than anyone I know and it’s often for some big beadie ideas! This time she has taken the “Beaded Cuttlebug” Embossing Technique to new sighs.

Here are the basic supplies that Julie used this time:

(Not shown: O’So Sticky Powder)

To create your own singing chocolate ATC just tear a piece of background paper vertically to cover half of the ATC. Follow the directions on the PWA website for doing the Beaded Cuttlebug Embossing Technique using Encore Ultimate Metallic Gold Ink by Tsukineko, Allegro Cuttlebug Embossing Folder by Provo Craft and Pennywise Arts Clear Ultra Fine Micro Beads.

Stamp Credits:

Candy/Cupcake Stamp by Hero Arts

Caption Stamp by Hampton Art Stamps

One More Belgium ATC

2011-03-30T11:13:00.001-07:00

I have to apologize to Cathy Hutchins of South Australia for missing her ATC card in my photo shoot! Ooopsies!

Thanks to Ann Lawton of Australia, this truly was an international ATC swap!

Hopefully soon I will have pics of the cards from the Belgium ladies!

Hugs, Suzanne

A Second Look

2011-03-30T02:31:00.000-07:00

Here’s another beautiful beaded window card that Michelle McCarthy created:

Love the icy look and the adorable penguin!

Belgium ATC Swap

2011-03-28T22:37:00.001-07:00

A small group of Pennywise artists had the opportunity to swap ATCs with a group of ladies from Belgium. These are the ATCs that were sent from the US:

Theresa Dalzel-Wells

Yvonne Grimes Ann Lawton

Diane Quinlan Julie Imsland

Kelli Green Laura Davis

Linda DesGroseilliers

Michelle McCarthy Suzanne Glazier

Theresa Dalzel-Wells

Can you guess what our theme was by looking at the ATCs? No cheating if you knew previously! Post your answer here!

Beaded Windows A New View

2011-03-26T03:29:00.000-07:00

PWA designer Michelle McCarthy told me that she was using the Beaded Window Technique in a little different way and I love what she has done!

Here’s the basic idea:

A card is created with a window in the front that shows through to the inside. That window is given a “frosty” look by beading one side of the acetate film with O’So Sticky Tape and clear micro beads.

We have a tutorial with step by step pictures on our website! If you want to give this technique a try click here.

Hugs, Suzanne

Tick Tock Fun Clock

2011-03-22T21:27:00.001-07:00

PWA Designer Michelle McCarthy has so many creative ideas pouring out of her head!

Look how she transformed a simple clock kit into a masterpiece of art for a friend:

I could definitely get used to seeing time in this whole new way!

Michelle is so good at just jumping right in and creating things that she can visualize in her head beforehand. And then there are people like me who want to know the “hows”…..

This is what Michelle started with:

The clock kit came from Paper Zone in two pieces, one solid piece (back) and one front piece with the precut squares and rectangles.

Supplies:

Designer papers

Micro beads: Stream, Brown and Clear.

O’So Sticky Tape

Stamps: Friendship Recipe Stampendous
Stamp by Inkadinkadoo (no name)

Various rhinestones, flowers, Buttons, Tags, misc.

Michelle said that the hardest part was to fit the top paper. To do it she turned over the top (front) wood piece and laid it on the back side of the card stock to trace the cut outs which were then trimmed with an Exacto knife.

The paper was then applied to the wood with thinned out glue and the bling and embellishments followed.

The edges were lined with a micro bead mix of Stream and Brown and some of the cut aways were filled in with clear beads.

This angle shows the micro beads off the best:

And a couple of slightly different views:

Such a neat project Michelle!!

Three Entries

2011-03-18T02:40:00.000-07:00

Remember Julie’s “Love Grows” beaded frame from a few weeks ago?

http://pennywisearts.blogspot.com/2011/02/love-grows.html

I now have three entries to share from the two brave gals who were willing to show what they have made using PWA products!

Genene Butler took a plain acrylic frame and added beads to jazz it up. Genene said that she wanted to practice applying the beads in layers and different layouts. This was her first attempt:

The second project Genene shared is her testing a theory on mixing beads and glitter to create unique globes:

Here’s an up close peek:

Theresa Dalzell-Wells sent in a photo of a wooden box she decorated using stamped images and PWA micro beads:

Thanks for taking the time to enter our fun little contest you two! Hopefully your bravery will inspire others to see just how easy it can be to enter and win with PWA!

And now to enter each of these talented ladies into “The Hat” program to select the recipient of Julie’s “lovely” frame….

And the winner is………….

Theresa!!!

And as an additional little surprise, Julie has taken the frame home with her to do an additional “little something” to it, lucky you Theresa!

And THANK you both for playing along with us!!

Hugs, Suzanne

Erin Go Braugh

2011-03-17T11:18:00.001-07:00

Michelle McCarthy used the same texturing technique with this great shamrock card as she did with the hearts one posted here. So get out your Cuttlebug and texture folders and see what kind of magic YOU can create!

Happy Green Day!

Hugs, Suzanne

A Frosted Spring

2011-03-16T00:21:00.000-07:00

When I look at this elegantly beaded card by PWA Designer Christine Grabb it takes my breath away.

Done all in white using a Nestabilities die and hand held punches Christine created each of the elements for this stunning card.

O’so Sticky Tape and Ultra Fine Micro Beads frame the scene of grass, butterflies and flowers. Our Iridescent Bubble Beads are the perfect accent for the finishing touch.

Beadalicious Grungeboard Embellishments

2011-03-03T02:26:00.000-08:00

I was just messing around one day……

and decided to paint a piece of Grungeboard with blue Lumier paint. When it was dry I covered it with Diamond Glaze. Then I sprinkled it with my sea inspired bead soup. (A mixture of seed beads, bugle beads and micro beads mostly in blue and purple hues with a splash of green and gold. I was so pleased with myself that I went on to do the ENTIRE package of Grungeboard in this manner! So if you see these elements on everything I do for awhile, that’s why! Ü

Here is a neat accordion book that Miss Yvonne taught me how to make using 6” square canvases as the covers.

I think my beadalicious Grungeboard was the perfect cover accent, don’t you?

I haven’t finished the inside yet but have big plans for the fun niches hidden inside!

I definitely need to bead more Grungeboard! Hmmmm,… what color combo to do next? Why don’t you try it and share yours with me!?

Hugs, Suzanne

Believing

2011-03-02T05:20:00.000-08:00

While going through some things in my craft room I came across this card by Evelyn Spikes. A version of it was featured in a long ago black and white issue of Vamp Stamp News.

I really appreciate Evelyn’s ability to make elegant art without a lot of “hoo-ha”. I tend to get caught up in all my stuff, Evelyn just gets in there and uses hers.

This card’s micro beaded element of the woman’s eye and fingers has been covered with O’So Sticky Tape and coated with ultra fine micro beads. The gems on the fingers are what really make this design HOT!

I’ve been following Evelyn’s photography blog and learning a lot about photography just by watching what she does. I think she will be pleased with this photo of her art, I know I was!

Hugs, Suzanne

PWA Annual Retreat

2011-02-27T00:15:00.001-08:00

Howdy Lassies!

It's time to get on your horses and pony express those registration forms and payments in for the PWA Roundup Retreat!! We still have room for about 10 more gals in the guest house – actually a really cool humungous lodge! Every bedroom has a bathroom!! Ü

Registration forms and all the info can be found on our website here http://www.pennywisearts.com/annualretreat.html

If you're registered and not a member of our retreat yahoo group, please let me know! Everyone that is coming to the retreat needs to be there so that important information can get to you quickly!

Cost is $240 per person A deposit of $50 will hold your place.

Multiple payments can be made as long as the balance is paid in FULL by April 1, 2011.

Craft all weekend, stay up as late as you want, eat when you want, sleep when you want and NO CHORES to talk to you!! Serious HEAVEN!!

Please spread the word and help us fill the house!! It’s not cheap, so the more people we have the less likely I’ll go bankrupt. Ü 30 gals is my goal!

Hugs, Suzanne

Beaded Love Shadow Box

2011-02-26T22:52:00.001-08:00

Once in awhile I host little “Migraine Parties” at my home. They were dubbed that about 7 years ago, and the name just stuck. All it means is that you call in sick to work (possibly with a migraine) and then come over and play for the day. I love having friends over to craft with me because their energy fills my craft room and the laughter and creativity lingers in the space for days after they’ve gone home. It’s fabulous!

Last time I had one of these parties, Julie Imsland was over working on her shadowbox – the one that NO ONE wants to win, even though they don’t have to DO anything other than take a picture and send an email …….for shame…but I digress…..

So, another PWA designer happened to be there that day, I call her Miss Yvonne, but her real name is Yvonne Grimes. Miss Yvonne was so inspired by Julie’s box that she actually drove HOME to look in her own craft stash and then came back with a box to work on!

Here’s what Miss Yvonne had to say:

“I was inspired by Michele A-Z’s shadowbox and Julie’s $1 spot find to look through my $1 store frame stash and came up with this shadowbox that was perfect for collage images.”

Beaded Love Shadow Box By Yvonne Grimes

Materials:

Wood shadowbox frame

Acrylic paint in desired color

Lumiere paint in desired colors

Tim Holtz Grungeboard letters, heart, and flower

PWA Opaque Micro beads in desired colors (I used red and pink from my stash)

PWA Bubble Beads

Assorted seed beads in desired colors

PWA Collage Sheet “Be Mine”

Cardstock (to back collage image)

Handmade or textured paper, contrasting color to paint & beads

Thick foam tape or dots (or layer thin foam tape to desired thickness)

Gold ‘german scrap’ borders

Small dried or other flowers

SureTac Glue

Krylon gold pen

How To:

Paint the entire frame with a base color in acrylic paint. After it dries apply one or two colors of Lumiere paints over the base coat. Apply with an almost dry brush so that you don’t entirely cover the base color. Set aside to dry.

Paint the grungeboard letters, heart, and flower with the same colors.

Apply “bead soup” (Suzanne’s word for it!) to the grungeboard letters and heart after the paint is dry. Apply a thick layer of SureTac glue to each piece of grungeboard. Then drop seed beads, bubble beads, and lastly micro beads onto the glue to entirely cover each piece and then set them aside to dry. (I put mine on a non-stick craft sheet or piece of foil so I can pick the whole thing up and move it.) Once the glue is dry, gently tap off the unstuck beads.

Use your finger or a dauber to apply a very thin layer of Lumiere paint directly to the grungeboard flower. I used contrasting colors so it would stand out against the frame.

Attach german scrap borders using SureTac glue around the outside of the frame and around the two sections where the collage images will be mounted.

Attach small piece of german scrap border using SureTac glue to bottom of each section where the collage images will be mounted.

Choose your collage images and trim to fit in the desired section of your frame. Mount each collage image onto a piece of cardstock cut slightly smaller than the image to add stability, and use foam tape or dots to mount each collage image into its niche.

Cut pieces of homemade or textured paper to go behind each grungeboard letter and the heart. Outline with gold Krylon pen if desired.

Mount the beaded grungeboard onto the background paper, and use foam tape or dots to mount each letter and the heart into its niche.

Use SureTac glue to attach the grungeboard flower and other flower embellishment onto the frame where desired.

Attach ribbon to the frame hangars.

I love to watch how we all inspire one another! I think I’ll be saving this one to award as blog candy for the blog hop that is coming soon!

Never Too Late For Love

2011-02-24T11:23:00.001-08:00

Valentine’s Day may have come and gone but it’s never too late to show some love to a friend. PWA Designer Michelle McCarthy created an atc with so much detail and interest I had to ask her to share the “how to” and she quickly fired back an entire tutorial with pictures and everything! Woweee! Be sure to read all the way to the end because Michelle shows how to create that cool background!

Supplies:

CS for top
CS for background
Any punch
Any colored Micro beads
O'so Sticky Tape or sheet
scissors

Directions:

1. Using any punch of choice, punch out from your chosen top CS. Make sure you leave space around edges to trim later.

2. Turning punch negative upside down, cover opening with piece of O'so tape, leaving front side with exposed tape.

3. Now dip and cover in chosen micro beads

4. from back, unpeel O’so tape and attach second or background piece (For instance, I wanted the heart to be solid red, so I added the red CS to "fill in" anything the micro beads may have missed.)

5. Now using your scissors, trim away around your punch, thus creating a frame around your micro beads shape. And there you go, O'So simple!

Bonus! Technique for background of ATC:

1. It really has to be seen in person for you to totally get the effect. All you do is add any shape or piece (I used the punch out from the heart I used to create the upper technique).

2. Apply to a background piece with a little glue to keep it down.

3. Run the whole piece through the die cutter with a chosen Embossing Folder. Now sit back and admire the technique! It's embedded into the larger piece of CS and is very cool!

Thanks so much Michelle! I LOVE this card!!

Winter Joy

2011-02-23T15:30:00.001-08:00

Baby it’s cold outside!! Here’s a frosty card to go with all of the snow we’ve been getting in North Bend. It’s a shaker card made with one of our templates and inside are micro beads, FruFru and some snowflakes too! This looks to me like something Chriss Grabb made, but it’s not signed so I can’t be totally sure.

Hugs, Suzanne

Pennywise Arts

What’s Shakin Valentine ATC

Small Fries Treat Box

Beaded By Candle Light

Valentine Gift Bag

Valentine Tags

Cherub Pin

Victorian Valentine Cone

Valentine Brad Charms

Happy New Year ATCs

Steampunk Time Bandit

Happy New Year!!

Merry Christmas!

Canning Lids In Disguise

New Glass Slide Ornaments

Creative Ways To Hang A Domino

Pennywise Annual Domino Ornament Swap!

Snowman Party Favor

To Grandmother’s House We Go

Snowy Scene Shaker Ornament

Snowman Domino

Holiday Candle Lights

Holiday Lights Chunky ATC

Beaded Holiday Lights

Santa’s Sleigh Snow Globe Ornament

Sparkly Lighted Ornaments

Snowman Starlight Shaker Card

Sweet Family Photo Ornament

Holiday Mice Tin

Pennywise QR Code!

Winter White Christmas Card

Victorian Christmas Card

Silver and Gold Ornament

Christmas Memories

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May All Your Pumpkins Be Plump!

Altered Cigar Mail Box

Holiday Chipboard Pins

Ornaments From Glass Slides

Glass Blocks Revisited

3-D Stars

The Little Things

A Spoonful of Bliss

Another Installment of Domino Ornaments

Domino Ornaments

Dominoes For Pins and Pendants

Passing On The Queen’s Cape

In The Beginning

Thanksgiving Collage Sheets

Are You Selling Beaded Crafts?

Talking Turkey

Beware! Brad Pendants Are Highly Addictive!

Brads Into Pendants Take Two

Brads into Pendants Take One

Even Disney Micro Beads!

Beaded Lace For Fall

Take Note

Hanging Collage ATC Holder

Halloween Skulls

Trick Or Treat

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Still Ticking

O’So Sticky Tape Makes A Comeback!

ATC Corsages

Floral Lattice

FUNky Flower Tin

Swimming Acetate Shaker

Butterflight

Springtime Tins Better Late Than Never, Right?

Glass Sculpture

Red, White and Blue SALE!!

Berries Fresh From The Garden

A Trio Of Paper Jewels To Wear

Foam Flower Wearables

A Hairclip To Match

Handmade Paper Jewelry

3-D Zots

Cowgirl Chunky ATC

PWA Retreat Recap

Will Spring Ever Get Here?

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