Friday, April 20, 2012

Little Biker Chick & Diana's Anniversary BLOG HOP!!!

Wow, it's been blog hop central over here.  I am super duper excited about this blog hop in particular. In this day in age with all the social networks, forums, challenge sites, blogs, etc. you can really meet some great people online and I consider myself fortunate to have met and developed a deep adoration for Miss Diana.

Today, we're celebrating her 3 year blog-iversary by doing a blog hop with several other talented scrappy ladies, who always WOW me with their creations. And, there's something in it for you! Hop on through each of the blogs below to find prizes and inspiration along the way. Plus, there's a chance to play along with us! Use the sketch Diana made, link your entry back at her blog, and you could win a $30 shop credit to Scrapbook Circle.  You have until April 30, 2012 to play along.

Okay, so let's get started with the hop.  If you are new to my site - WELCOME. I hope you'll like what you see and become my newest follower! If you've been here before - WELCOME BACK!

Here is my page, inspired by the sketch below.  I'm also doing a GIVEAWAY! Leave me a comment below (and follow my blog if you wish but it's not required) for a chance to win some goodies from the Amy Tangerine and Heidi Swapp lines I used in my layout! My prize is not pictured but this layout should give you a pretty good hint of what may or may not be in my sampler giveaway...
Supplies: from Scrapbook Circle April 2012 kit "Daydreamer" 

Inspired by this sketch by Diana:

A few close-ups:
Look at all the bright 80's neon that's making a comeback! Can you believe it?

I misted the Heidi Swapp letters with mist and then rubbed it off. I love that you can alter the colors of these alphas!
Lots of layering, distressing, and fussy cutting!
A little peek at my journaling...

Your next stop is the talented Corrie Jones. If you get lost along the way, here is the hop order:

Heather Leopard <--That's ME!
Corrie Jones {http://corejones.blogspot.com/}
Audrey Yeager {http://audreysreflection.blogspot.com/}
Antonia Krajicek {http://www.greenhornedunicorn.com/}
Shannon Bogan {http://agirlcalledchicken.blogspot.com/}
Lisa Swift {http://lisarukinswift.blogspot.com/}
Julie Tucker-Wolek {http://thetuckerwolekclan.blogspot.com/}
Jennifer Ingle {http://justjingle.blogspot.com/}
Tessa Buys {http://precociouspaper.blogspot.com/}
Ashley Horton {http://ashleyspaperdoll.blogspot.com/}
Sara Zenger {http://sarazenger.blogspot.com/}
Diana Fisher {http://designbydiana.blogspot.com/}

Thanks for stopping by today! Good Luck! 

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Save the Date & a Scrapbook Circle Sneak Peek

Hi friends! Looking for The Twinery and Imaginisce blog hop? Click the link or scroll to my previous post but make sure to read this first...

I'm so excited to share a sneak peek of "The Story", aka Scrapbook Circle's May kit.  But wait, there's more...You will want to mark your calendars for this! Something fun will be happening this right here on this blog this weekend!
My dear, talented, crafty gal pal, Diana Fisher is celebrating her 3 year "blogiversary" and asked ME to be a part of it. Yep, she has pulled together a few of her amazingly crafty friends for a weekend blog hop and I can't wait!  There will be inspiration to be found and prizes to be won from Paper Issues, Precious Remembrance Shop, and one of my fave kit clubs, Scrapbook Circle. Most, if not all, of the designers will be giving away goodies on each of their blogs as well.  Lots of chances to win!

Speaking of Scrapbook Circle, the project I'll be creating for the hop and sharing with you will be using the April kit, called Daydreamer. There's only a few left so if you love the new Amy Tan, Lilybee and Heidi Swapp, you should head over there now to get your hands on this.

Now, I promised a sneak of the May kit, Daydreamer.  Check this out...What do you see there? 

Thanks for stopping by today. I'll see you this weekend!

Monday, April 16, 2012

CELEBRATE Your Love of Twine Blog Hop

Hi everyone! I am so excited to be partnering with The Twinery and Imaginisce for this super fun blog hop!!!

The Twinery sent us all their newest colors to create and play with and trust me, I've been using it on anything and everything (just take a peek at any of my recent projects in my previous posts)!

For today's hop, I pulled out my Imaginisce Animal Crackers collection and my i-top to create this fun little birthday card.

To make the card, I simply adhered pattern paper to the bottom half of the card, large enough for my little alligator die-cut to pop off of. Then I used my i-top 2.0 and made birthday "balloon" using the small (16mm) and medium (22mm) brad daddies. Before attaching them to the card, I tied the twine to the brad points in the back to keep the twine in place. Then I attached them to the card and added a bit more twine to ensure they looked like balloons. I tied the twine around the gators tail. Lastly, I fussy cut the banner from the animal crackers paper, added some whimsy twine and added a "celebrate" sentiment. Oh and I HAD to add a bit if glam to the bottom with my i-rock/glam rocks. Now I just need someone to have a birthday!!!


Now, on to the rest of the hop...the hop will continue all week and we'll be showcasing members from each of the talented teams all week and of course, there will be prizes to be won!!
Here is today's BLOG HOP ORDER.
Imaginisce - start here if you are just beginning the blog hop!
Heather Leopard <-- That's Me!

Wanna see what prizes that are up for grabs???
3 lucky blog hoppers will win this Twinery Giveaway
"I Dream in Twine" Packages (retail $32)
This is what they sent me! Imagine the fun you will have!


3 lucky blog hoppin' gals will win this Makin' Waves collection pack (retail $37) from Imaginisce
To be eligible to win, you must comment on each blog, each day throughout the week, Follow the Imaginisce & The Twinery blogs (if I've inspired you along the way, I'd love it if you'd follow my blog as well but it's certainly not a requirement!) AND Follow the Imaginsce & The Twinery Facebook pages

The deadline for leaving comments is 11:59 EDT, Sunday April 22. Winners will be announced by The Twinery and Imaginisce on Monday, April 23rd.   

Good luck everyone and happy blog hopping! Your next stop is Ashley Bores

Sunday, April 15, 2012

We Have Our Winners! Is Your Name Below?

I'm so excited to announce the winners of my two recent blog hops!!!

The winner Paper Issues Blog Hop winner is Bethany Becker! Thanks for the blog-love and for following me! I'm off to check out your blog too!  Send your info and address to paperissues@gmail.com and Cassie will get it in the mail to you!

If you want the latest scrappy goodies 20% off with super great shipping, visit Paper Issues and enter code HEATHER at checkout to get your discount.

The winner of the Scrapp'n Savvy Blog Hop is Maria V. You have won a free spot in my April 23 class at our local scrapbook store, Scrapp'n Savvy! Contact Scrapp'n Savvy at 281-288-7289 to get your free spot in the class.  Here's what we'll be creating.

There are only 2 spots left so get a friend to sign up and come with you or if you are local to Houston, come create with me! Sign up HERE.

Here's a snapshot for my May class. There are 3 spots left so sign up today while you can!


Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Swoon.......

You know that feeling when you are truly smitten with someone?  Or in the scrapbooking world, it might be something! Well the new Swoon collection from Little Yellow Bicycle lets you capture those connections. I am soo excited to share my first design team reveal with you. Or is it my 2nd, since I created a layout for the DT reveal?

Anywho, I made these cards.  They are a little departure from my usual layered, distressed look but I was really inspired to go for the more simple, elegant, almost delicate touch.

To create the card above, I cut strips approximately 3/4" wide by 4 1/4" long. I then punched them with a Martha Stewart punch. Starting at the bottom, I layered each on top of each other. There are 13 in all. I was going for a lacey effect and kept the rest of it simple by adding a bit of ribbon and a sentiment.

I chose to keep this card simple as well. I think it could be used for a wedding or an anniversary.  This card was inspired by the paper that, to me, looks like a garden trellis. The the stick pens, once laid on top of the paper, looked like flowers growing in the garden. I pulled the card together by adding a bit of ribbon and a sentiment that has a similar trellis-like look. I added a frame, painted to match the color of the gold pins, around the sentiment to make it pop off the grey background. 

To attache the pins to the card, I cut the foam packaging they came in and glued to the card. I then cut a 2nd piece of the same background paper the length of the card so that the bottom trellis would match the back. I glued the paper to the foam packaging and then used pop dots on the opposite side of the card where there aren't any pins to adhere the paper.

Thanks for stopping by today.  Make sure to head over to the Little Yellow Bicycle blog to see the cards my fellow Biker Chicks Jen Chesnick and Shanna Vineyard created.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Blog Hops, Classes and CHEVRONS! Oh MY!

If you're here for my BIG NEWS about Little Yellow Bicycle, welcome to my blog. Click HERE to see how excited I am about joining the design team.

If you're here for the Scrappin' Savvy Blog Hop, click HERE to see some of my class projects and to enter to win a spot in my class.

If you are here for the Paper Issues Blog Hop and for a chance to win a great prizes, you are in the right place!

How would you like to win a little mini kit, similar to the one shown, packed full of chevron and other goodies?  All you have to do is participate in the Paper Issues blog hop that starts today and goes for two weeks. Each creative team member will be giving away a kit on their blog as well as the Paper Issues blog so you have lots of chances to win!  All you have to do to win this kit is leave me a comment and follow my blog if any of my projects have inspired you!
Have you been to the Paper Issues blog or etsy store? It's a really great concept because we all have paper issues, right?  Well Paper Issues is an inspirational blog that has a new "issue" every two weeks. Anyone can link up your old or newly created project for the current theme for a chance to be featured or to get some extra traffic to your blog too. The theme this week is SHOW ME YOUR CHEVRON!

Now let me share a bit of CHEVRON projects I've been working on and a coupon code to the Paper Issues store.
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So this first layout is the 1-page layout we will be doing in my May class at Scrappin' Savvy. April's class is using the My Mind's Eye Follow Your Heart "Be Amazing" collection as seen HERE and May will be using the Echo Park "Charming" collection, as seen below. If you can't make my class, you can get this Echo Park This & That "Charming" collection on the Paper Issues etsy store at 20% off using coupon code: HEATHER 


Supplies:
Echo Park This & That collection: THC26010 Numbers, THC26013 Border Strips, THC26014 ElementStickers, THC26015 AlphaStickers, Brown/white twine from The Twinery, Studio Calico Mr. Huey mists in Estate Green, Pony and Piglet, misc. buttons, Sew Stamper tool


We'll also be creating this 2-page layout and a notepad cover (not pictured). Again, you can get the supplies to make this on the Paper Issues etsy store using the 20% off coupon code: HEATHER
 If you look closely at the background cardstock, you can faintly see a chevron print. I made that using a Crafter's Workshop mask and mist.

Lastly, I made this card using photo corners to make the chevron pattern. I posted the DIY  instructions HERE.


Remember to leave a comment and follow my blog (if you liked what you saw) for a chance to win the mini kit I am giving away. Make sure to visit the other ladies to increase your chances of winning:
Heather Leopard - You Are Here

Thanks for stopping by today and if you have a sec, check out my previous post below to read my Little Yellow Bicycle news.
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Big Little Yellow Bicycle News & A Natural Cutie

So I have a lot of good stuff to share with you today so I'll be posting twice today! Trust me, you'll want to come back again later for a blog hop and a chance to win some scrappy goodness!

Before I get to that however, if you are looking for the Scrappin Savvy blog hop and a chance to win a spot in my April class, click HERE! But first, check out my exciting news!!!!

So this news is super duper, jump up and down, can I get a woohoo, exciting!  This is NOT an April Fool's joke!!!

I've been invited to become a Little Yellow Bicycle Biker Chick. Yep, I am joining their 2012/2013 design team. It's a small team but it's packed with so much talent!
Vicki Boutin - Canada
Jenny Chesnick - Maryland
Corrie Jones - Georgia
Heather Leopard - Texas <--- That's ME!
Shanna Vineyard - Arizona
Tania Willis - Ohio
Greta Hammond - Indiana - Retail/Trade Show Specialist
Liz Qualman - Colorado - DT Coordinator

We've all created brand spankin' new layouts for this announcement and I hope mine will inspire you.



Supplies:
American Crafts cardstock - cream, Little Yellow Bicycle Paradise collection: PD-104 Splendid Stripe/Olive Leaves, PD-101 Paradise/Petite Pom Poms, PD-108 Blissful Dots/Teal Tapestry, PD-168 Chipboard Sticker - slider with glitter accents, PD-305 Paper Flower Kit, PD-135 Cardstock Stickers - Favorite Pieces - with glitter accents,  PD-1100 Tear Out Ticket Book - with thermography and embossing, Studio Calico Mr. Huey mists in Bonny Blue and Dark Calico, Glue Arts Pro Glider, Zig Marker in Chocolate


My layout is made with the last bit of remaining scraps from my stint on the "Paradise" collection Cycling Team but it's pretty true to my style. Make sure to head over to the LYB blog today to see what everyone else created. Thanks for being excited with me!

Friday, March 30, 2012

A Bit of This & That - Scrappin' Savvy Blog Hop

Hello, hello! I don't think I've blogged in about a week but I certainly have been busy creating projects that I just haven't been able to share just yet.  That's why I'm excited to show you these layouts and also let you know about a little blog hop we are doing with my LSS, Scrapp'n Savvy, which I teach at. These layouts are a little sampler of some of the things you'll be creating if you attend one of my classes. 

First let me tell you about the blog hop and then stay tuned to hear about my classes. If you're not local, I hope these projects inspire you. 

Welcome to the Scrapp'n Savvy Blog Hop! During this hop, you will learn about each teachers classes at the store and be eligible to win FREE class sessions. To enter, you must leave a comment on EACH teachers' blog and then return to the Scrapp'n Savvy blog and leave a comment that you have completed the hop. We will also be sharing with you information about our classes and techniques and tips that we used to create our "HOME" banners!

My class is called A Little Bit of This & That. I call it that because it's like a box of chocolates - you never know what you're gonna get. That being said, it usually consists of a couple of layouts plus maybe a mini album or perhaps a card.

For April's class, we will be playing with My Mind's Eye Follow Your Heart "Be Amazing" collection and a bit of October Afternoon Farmhouse. We'll be doing one 1-page layout, one 2-page layout and a DIY (do-it-yourself) smash-like mini album. Here are the 1-page and 2-page layouts. The mini is still a secret but I think you'll love it.

Supplies are from my Scrapbook Circle Remember This kit, which is sold out but these items can be purchased at Scrappin' Savvy as well.  Supplies: My Mind's Eye Follow Your Heart Be Amazing collection: Societe, 6 x6 Designer Paper Pad, 12x12 chipboard, brads, Zig Marker in black.

The 1-page layout focuses on layering, fussy cutting to create handmade elements, stitching, dimension and more.

Here's a sneak at the 2-page layout. The actual layout will be at the Sampler event on Saturday. Techniques will include, distressing, misting, stitching (I used the new Sew Stamper tool) and will include a bit of layering. Are you starting to see a pattern? Yep, I'd say pretty much all of my layouts include a bit of each of those elements.

Not pictured from my April class is the DIY mini album.

For May, we'll be designing with Echo Park's Thise & That Charming collection. Similar to April's class, we'll be creating the 1-page and 2-page layout below plus a notepad booklet (great gift idea). The booklet is not pictured. Note: if you were here before I only posted a sneak because I had to hold it back for the Paper Issues blog hop but now I can post the full reveal.


Full page was revealed on April 1 so I updated this post to see the entire layout because there was soo much more to it that I couldn't show you!

So what do you see? Maybe a bit of mist, distressing, stitching and layered elements? You'll get to play with the Imaginisce i-top tool and the new Sew Stamper to make your faux stitches. The notepad booklet will be made from the same collection and if you like the style of the layout above, you won't be disappointed.

GIVEAWAY
This is for locals only (sorry). I'm giving away a spot in my April class. All you have to do is follow my blog and leave me a comment. I will do a random drawing on April 5. Either way, I hope to see you in my classes!
 
If you are attending the Sampler on Friday and Saturday you'll be making a fantastic "HOME" decor item. I will share my ideas for decorating it as soon as I get to create with mine.
 
Thanks for stopping by my blog today. Be sure to visit and comment on each of the blogs listed below for your chance to some scrappy goodies from Scrappin's Savvy, in addition to the free class I am giving away!


Scrappn’ Savvy Blog- http://www.razzilldazzilltime.blogspot.com/
Millie Jones- http://generationswithmillie.blogspot.com/
Audrey Yeager- http://www.audreysreflection.blogspot.com/
Heather Leopard- YOU ARE HERE!
Terri Burnette- http://thepaperassylum.blogspot.com/
Leslie Parlette- http://designsdessertdisasters.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping by today!

Monday, March 19, 2012

Spring into Spring Card

Hello there!  I've been having a ton of fun with ribbon in my scrap room lately.  Wanna know why? Imaginisce just came out with this really cool ribbon cutter and sealer and it has made my life so much easier.  It's called the i-magicut.

I have to be honest and tell you that I was skeptical at first. I can cut my ribbon with scissors and I know how to heat seal my ribbon, but........I never cut it perfectly, especially when I try to cut it banner style (live a chevron) and, and this is a big and, I either don't have my lighter handy to seal the edges and it frays OR, I apply the flame and it melts my cut and warps it all up and I have to try again until I get it right. I know I sound like a commercial and I don't mean to be but this tool is just so cool because it cuts it and seals it great each time.

Okay, so I got crazy with the tool and just started cutting away at the ribbon and created this Spring card.
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 I wanted to really test out the i-magicut with this project and it definitely got a workout.  What better way to showcase small strips of ribbon than to create a weave? To make it I adhered the bottom right corner horizontal and vertical strips of ribbon. Then I just worked my way across the bottom overlapping and adhering the vertical strips. Once I had all the vertical strips placed, I weaved in the horizontal strips, double checking that I wasn't skipping under/overs as I went along, and I did have to re-do a couple.  After I laid my last ribbon, I tightened up the rows and adhered the edges with fabri-tac.
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Head over to the Imaginisce blog today and each day post through Thursday, where you'll find video tutorials and you can even try to win one for yourself.

Friday, March 16, 2012

Happy Go Lucky Backseat Driver

So I got this Facebook message a week or two ago promising me that I wasn't be stalked but that someone was looking for me. Apparently, they had seen my blog and thought my work was "fan-freaking-tastic" and asked if I'd be willing to be a guest blogger for them. After trying to figure out why they didn't just email me, I realized that I was not making myself accessible for opportunities like this.  I took three actions, checked out a site that in all honesty I knew about but forgot about (shame on me), accepted the offer and updated my blog to include my email address - duh!

Sooooooo, I am excited to be blogging for Scrapbook Steals.com today. Did you know that they not only have great daily deals but they have an inspiration blog too?  If you came here from the blog, WELCOME!

Anyway, today I am showcasing my love of Mr. Huey mists. I really enjoy getting dirty with paint and mists and such but it doesn’t always have to be make a mess, nor should it be intimidating, like many people think.

They asked me to share a few scrapbooking ideas and tips with you to show you just how fun the misting technique can be. I’ve been playing with mists for years but I fell in love with Mr. Huey mists last year after attending Kelly Purkey’s misting techniques class at CKC Houston.

Let's jump into my first scrapbook layout...I pulled out my favorite go-to kit club stash from Scrapbook Circle and I laid out all of my papers, photos and elements to figure out where I wanted everything arranged and then I took a visual picture in my head, removed everything from the page and spray misted with brown in the 3 spots you see below. I then pulled the nozzle out of the bottle and flicked blue mist onto the page over the brown to give it a splattered look.
Scrapbook supplies: from Scrapbook Circle Remember This February 2012 kit - Crate Paper Love Letter paper, October Afternoon Farmhouse Flower Sack, Crate Paper Farmhouse Alpha Sticker Sheet, Whisker Graphics Chevron Aqua Bag, Elle's Studio Lil Snippets Treasured tag sheet, Yellow Twine, Whisker Graphics Large White Tag, My Mind's Eye Be Amazing Button Card. Scrapbook Circle Be Amazing Kit Add-on - My Mind's Eye Be Amazing 12 x 12 Chipboard, My Mind's Eye Be Amazing Brads, My Mind's Eye Be Amazing 6x6 pad (hexagon paper). Not included in the kit Mr. Huey Calico Classic Calico and Bonny Blue, Chocolate Zig Pen, jute twine.

I’m also a fan of making things pop on the page so I used foam squares to lift different elements off the page. Some but not all of the hexagons, word banners and embellishments are popped.

For my 2nd page, I chose to scale back a little with the mist but it’s still an important part of the story.
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Scrapbooking Supplies: Scrapbook Circle Best. Day. Ever. kit - Dear Lizzy Cheerful Notes, Dear Lizzy Neapolitan At First Sight paper, Dear Lizzy Neapolitan Sunny Skip paper. Scrapbook Circle Scatter Sunshine Add-on - Dear Lizzy Date Roller, Dear Lizzy Neapolitan Printed Chipboard Shapes. Not in kit: Dear Lizzy Neapolitan Hazy Horizon paper, Dear Lizzy Neapolitan Buttons & Accents, Dear Lizzy Neapolitan Fair Ribbon, Dear Lizzy Neapolitan Letter Stickers, American Crafts Thickers, Core'dinations Color Core Cardstock, Mr. Huey Bonny Blue, Sew Stamper, Black Zig Pen.

These are Instagram photos with a filter to make them look vintagy so the splatter effect was called for again here. Usually I will do the splatter on my foundation piece before I start layering everything but since I was going for an aged look, I adhered all the papers first and then misted, hoping a few splatters would land on the different papers. I then added the photos.
I knew I wanted to add clouds to the top right corner of the layout so I flicked a little blue mist over there before I stitched the clouds to the paper. Also, the blue cloud was much brighter than I wanted so I toned down the color by spraying blue mist over it. Then I placed it so that the mist splatter would look like rain coming from it. It was a gorgeous fall day but I liked the rain effect.
So, those are my projects for today. As you can probably see, I really do love my Mr. Huey mists. Before I go, I thought I’d share a few tips to keep in mind when using your mists:

• I use an old 13x13x5-ish box handy for all my misting projects. I just put the paper or item in the box and mist away. This protects everything around me from getting mist on it. It’s fun to look at your box each time because you can see traces of all your projects in there.
• Use a stencil, die-cut or negative image from a die-cut to create a mask for misting.
• Use a stencil or die-cut and instead of using it as a mask, mist it up and press it over your project like you would a stamp. Lift to see your image.
• Mist your stamps for a really cool effect
• Heat emboss an image and then mist over it
• Alter the color of twine, ribbon, canvas, alphas, anything that will take color, including paper
• The possibilities are endless. You will learn by experimenting. Of course you’ll want to use practice paper if you are new to the world of misting.
• Last tip is to DON'T STRESS and HAVE FUN!

Thanks for stopping by today. If my pages and tips inspired you, and you are in the market for some FAB misting products, check out today's Scrapbook Steal deal on them.