Archive for June, 2010

Jun 28 2010

Happy Independence Day, America!

Published by Charlotte under Handmade Card, Independence Day

My sister and I were going through some boxes of old family photos when we discovered four manila envelops full of vintage postcards.  I was so excited … it was like Christmas had come early! 
 
quilled-july-4th-cardThere is very little correspondence written on them, but it appears that from 1912 to 1915, Miss Harriett E. Prizer of Brighton, Iowa, was being courted by a gentleman named Arthur residing in Becket, Massachusetts.  We are not sure where Miss Prizer fits into our family tree, but we are now very curious.

 

One card, postmarked 1915, pokes fun at Women’s Suffrage and depicts what those opposed thought might happen if women obtained the right to vote.  Thank goodness the 19th Amendment was proposed on June 4, 1919 and ratified on August 18, 1920.  I thought it would make a fun graphic for a July 4th card.  The postcard reads:
WILT THOU LOVE, HONOUR, CHERISH, AND VOTE AS THY WIFE DICTATES?
 
quilled-july-4th-card-insideThe sentiment inside the card …
 
For this card, I created a 5″ square top fold card out of white card stock.  Next, I scanned the postcard and resized it a bit smaller, printed it, then double matted it on red and navy card stock.  The “ribbon” is actually fabric from my stash that I tore into strips.  The red and blue buttons are tied with string and held on with glue dots.  I was going to just attach my quilled bottle rocket in the upper right-hand area, but it got lost in a sea of white, so I created a double mat from the same red and navy card stock and glued the rocket to it so that it would pop.
 
quilled-july-4th-bottle-rocket-fireworksThe rocket cone is a triangle made from a 12 inch strip of 1/8 inch wide navy paper.  The body of the rocket are C-coils made from 3 inch strips of red, white, and blue 1/8″ wide paper that are turned on end and glued coil side down.  The rocket “stick” is simply two strips of white paper glued together for added firmness.  To finish off the rocket, I glued a small piece of the the same white string used with the buttons to form the fuse.
 
A big THANK YOU to all who serve our country — both military and civilian — and who work hard protecting our many freedoms.
 
Have a happy and safe July 4th.
 

4 responses so far

Jun 06 2010

Quilled Puzzle Piece Magnet

Published by Charlotte under Quilling Gifts, Quilling How-To, Quilling Inspiration

quilled-cherries-puzzle-magnetI really appreciate all of the feedback I receive from my newsletter subscribers and blog readers.   One request that I hear quite often is for more quilling projects made from recycled materials, which is great because I enjoy creating them!
 
Several weeks ago, I stopped by a local thrift store and found a handmade cookbook from 1971.  You know the kind — the recipes were all typed with a real typewriter then the pages were mimeographed and bound with a metal prong file clip into a book for the club members.  It was awesome and all for only $0.50.  What a bargain.
 
Along with the retro cookbook, I have had an old children’s puzzle in my supply stash for quite awhile (ever since the all important “last piece” went missing).   When I looked in my inspiration bin and saw the cookbook and puzzle pieces, I knew I had the ingredients to cook up this week’s project — a quilled kitchen magnet.
 
Since your materials will differ (we are trying to use what we have, remember), I offer these general instructions as a guide for making your own Quilled Puzzle Piece Magnet.
 
You will need
Chipboard puzzle piece
Background paper (scrapbook paper, old wallpaper, etc.)
Recipe (from old book, newspaper, magazine, etc.)
Quilling paper, 1/8″ wide
Basic quilling tools (discussed earlier)
Spray adhesive
Sandpaper or emery board
Permanent fine-line marker, black
Distress ink (I used Tim Holtz’s Tea Dye)
Cotton swab
Magnet
Spray acrylic sealer (optional)
 
General instructions
  1. Turn your puzzle piece so that the plain chipboard side is facing up (this will be the front of your magnet) and place it onto your background paper (right side of paper facing up), trace around the puzzle piece and cut out.  Spray the front of the puzzle piece and the back side of the cut-out background paper with spray adhesive and adhere the two together. 
  2. Tear the recipe to fit the puzzle piece and glue in place.  Clean up the edges of the puzzle piece by sanding them with the sand paper or emery board.
  3. Dab the cotton swab on the ink pad and highlight the edges of the puzzle piece and torn edges of the recipe.  Using the permanent marker, make stitch marks around the edges of the puzzle piece. 
  4. You are now ready to add the quilling.  Here is where you can get creative matching the quilling to your chosen recipe.  Since the one I selected was “Cherries in the Snow,” I added ripe red cherries with green leaves.  This design would also work well with a cherry pie or tart recipe. 
  5. Spray the puzzle piece with an acrylic sealer (optional), glue a magnet to the back, and you’re done.
 
 
Quilling Tip
If you want THE gift for a special holiday that is sure to touch the recipient’s heart, make a copy of a handwritten recipe from a cherished family member and use it on the magnet, matching your quilling to the recipe.  If your family is anything like mine, be ready for a big hug and have an extra tissue handy.
….
 
 

8 responses so far